Maze Runner Movie vs. Book

Many books turned to movies have obtained considerable failure while going from white page to silver screen. Take Percy Jackson, for example. Probably the worst movie rendition of a book that I have ever seen. Sure, Sean Bean and Logan Lerman were there, but even that couldn't have saved the movie. There is risk in making a motion picture based on a top-selling novel. For one,  the audience you're appealing to is a majority of book nerds (like me). If you skimp of the book details, there will be talk of an uprising. We want it done, but we want it done right. 

I absolutely love the Maze Runner book. Not so much a fan of the entire series, but the Maze Runner itself is fantastic. The Scorch Trials and The Death Cure just went downhill for me. It was violent, and I felt the author lost all sense of the story. It warped too much and eventually bored me. (Honestly I can't even remember how this series ends...) While it ended badly, the series started out well with the Maze Runner. When I went to the theater, I just hoped that the movie makers didn't mess it up too bad. 

First thing that the Maze Runner movie people did right: Dylan O'Brien. Second thing they did right: the setting. Exactly like the book! And not just the setting; the story and the character were all so close to the book. I loved the cast (except for Theresa, but I'll get to that later) and Chuck was the highlight of the movie. O'Brien was perfect for this role. He was exactly like how I imagined Thomas in my mind. And the Grievers (even though they scared the crap out of me) were just right. When I read the book, they were less scary, and I think they could have toned it down in the movie. But overall, they were great. And the action was fantastic. Watching this movie, I finally understood what the term "at the edge of your seat" meant. I must have held my breath for two thirds of the entire movie. 

Things the Maze Runner people did wrong: Theresa, and the violence. I did not like the girl casted for Theresa; they could have done so much better. She was a mediocre actress at best. Secondly, the violence. While the book was violent, book violence is different from movie violence. In books, you can kind of just skim past all the blood and gore, while in movies, you kind of have to watch it. I didn't like that I had to watch it. The book was violent, I'll admit that, but the movie seemed even more violent than the book. 

By the time the theater lights faded in, I liked the movie. My heart was pumping hard and the book nerd inside of me was satisfied (and not just from watching O'Brien for two hours straight). Fans of the Maze Runner I am sure will be fans of this movie. Not even the person sitting behind me who felt it necessary to kick my seat of five minutes could ruin the movie for me. It was good, and I liked it, and I think other people will too.