Maze Runner 3 Movie

The past few years have been a rather dystopian era for dystopian YA film adaptations. After “The Hunger Games” became a genuine phenomenon, studios went on a spending spree, scouring increasingly indistinguishable tales of chosen ones and oppressive government regimes for potential franchises, with decidedly mixed results. Ever since Jennifer Lawrence called time on Katniss, “Divergent” has fizzled out rather ignominiously; “Ender’s Game” and “The 5th Wave” proved to be nonstarters; and after a delayed production that saw series lead Dylan O’Brien injured in an on-set accident, “Maze Runner: The Death Cure,” the third and final entry in Fox’s adaptations of James Dashner’s books, finally arrives this month with relatively little fanfare. Somewhat surprisingly, however, “Maze Runner’s” core team – including original series director Wes Ball – have rallied to give this once middling saga a proper sending-off. Jai ho lyrics videos. Downplaying some of the property’s sillier elements when not jettisoning them entirely, and streamlining the narrative into a rousing and at times even emotional action film, “Death Cure” is the most successful entry in the franchise by far. It may be too late to turn the cultural tide on the genre, but it comes as a relief to see at least one series manage to stick the landing.

Perhaps mindful that the film is unlikely to attract many newcomers at this point, “Death Cure” devotes almost no time to catching audiences up on the events of 2014’s “The Maze Runner” and 2015’s “Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials.” For those with short memories, our hero Thomas (O’Brien) is still hard at work fighting an evil, quasi-governmental agency known as WCKD, which imprisoned him and a slew of comparably good-looking youngsters in a monster-filled labyrinth called “The Glade” in the first film, then pursued them across a harsh desert wasteland in the second. They did this as part of a needlessly complicated strategy to fight a massive global pandemic known as “The Flare,” which turns the infected into mindless zombie-like creatures called cranks. The poor kids imprisoned in the maze (they call themselves “Gladers”) are immune to the Flare virus’ effects, and WCKD’s head pair of sinister scientists (Aidan Gillen, Patricia Clarkson) subject them to various nefarious procedures to try to extract a cure from their blood.

This underlying concept, as revealed at the end of the first film and elaborated upon endlessly in the second, is all exceedingly daft – and the more the series’ mythology expands, the daffier it tends to get. But it’s here that “Death Cure” makes its most surprising choice: it barely concerns itself with the particulars of the whole conspiracy at all. Instead, what we get is essentially an old-school jailbreak movie, and director Ball wastes zero time flexing his action chops, kicking off the film with a solidly executed train robbery sequence. The robbers in question are Thomas and his trusty Glader buddies Newt (Thomas Brodie-Sangster) and Frypan (Dexter Darden), as well sardonic resistance fighters Brenda (Rosa Salazar) and Jorge (Giancarlo Esposito). Their target is a train full of young prisoners headed to a WCKD facility, among them the group’s captured comrade Minho (Ki Hong Lee). They manage to rescue a car full of kids successfully, but Minho is not among them – he’s been taken to WCKD headquarters in this wasteland’s mythical last bastion of civilization, the appropriately named Last City.

The gang all pledge to rescue their friend or die trying. The Last City, which they reach after some rote zombie-fighting, essentially resembles a landlocked Hong Kong, its gleaming skyscrapers surrounded by massive, heavily fortified walls that keep the filthy rabble living in shantytowns below from entering. (“The walls are new – I guess that’s WCKD’s answer to everything,” Esposito’s Jorge says, in one of several moments that seem to draw fairly explicit parallels to the Trump administration.) Inside, Minho is suffering through WCKD’s various laboratory tortures, all carried out by a onetime Glader and previous Thomas love interest-turned-traitor, Teresa (Kaya Scodelario).

Struggling to find a way inside, Thomas and company fall in with a mysterious, gruesomely scarred resistance figure (Walton Goggins), as well as an unexpected returning character from the first film. Once they finally breach the city walls, the film comes to life. While “Death Cure’s” sweeping aerial shots still rely on obvious computer graphics, the street-level city scenes are among the series’ most fully realized and effectively designed, from the propaganda videos broadcasting on electric billboards to the half-glimpsed arrests of the suspected infected on teeming street corners. While not as visually resplendent as “The Hunger Games’” Capitol, the Last City is a believable rendering of a post-apocalyptic metropolis, and the care that went into sketching the setting pays off when the city devolves into an all-out warzone in the film’s final act.

“Death Cure” can certainly fall victim to overkill – the climax drags out several scenes longer than it has to; the thunderous sound design grows deadening with one explosion after another – and there are more than a few key plot turns that seem to have lost some important context in the transition to the screen. But damned if Ball doesn’t pull off some impressive firefights and last-minute escapes once the action gets humming. “The Maze Runner” was Ball’s first film, and his ability to craft comprehensible setpieces has steadily improved throughout the trilogy.

So too have the performances. Salazar once again proves herself to be an action hero in the making, given much more to do here than in “The Scorch Trials,” while Gillen hones his previously ridiculous antagonist into a properly hissable villain. O’Brien – who, to be fair, was rarely asked to do more than look alternately determined and terrified as he dodged countless terrors in the previous films – has noticeably matured as an actor here, and he sells the film’s emotional beats with a good deal of charisma. Brodie-Sangster has his moments, and Scodelario manages to get across a character of more complicated motivations than one usually sees in films of this ilk. Ironically, this cast has finally started to gel into a group you wouldn’t mind spending time with, just as they’re preparing to say goodbye. Well, better late than never.

Maze Runner: The Death Cure (also known simply as The Death Cure) is a 2018 American dystopianscience fictionaction film directed by Wes Ball and written by T.S. Nowlin, based on the novel The Death Cure written by James Dashner. It is the sequel to the 2015 film Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials and the third and final installment in the Maze Runner film series. The film stars Dylan O'Brien, Kaya Scodelario, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Dexter Darden, Nathalie Emmanuel, Giancarlo Esposito, Aidan Gillen, Walton Goggins, Ki Hong Lee, Jacob Lofland, Katherine McNamara, Barry Pepper, Will Poulter, Rosa Salazar, and Patricia Clarkson.

Maze Runner: The Death Cure was originally set to be released on February 17, 2017, in the United States by 20th Century Fox, but the studio rescheduled the film's release for January 26, 2018, in theatres and IMAX, allowing time for O'Brien to recover from injuries he sustained during filming. The film received mixed reviews from critics and grossed over $288 million worldwide.

• 3Production
• 4Release
• 5Reception

Plot[edit]

Thomas, Newt, and Frypan are the last of the free 'Gladers' immune to the Flare virus that has ravaged the world's population. They and The Right Arm resistance conduct a rescue operation where they retrieve other Immunes from a train operated by WCKD, an organization responsible for capturing and experimenting on immune children. They discover that Minho, their remaining Glader friend whom WCKD had captured, was not on that train, which is headed to 'The Last City', WCKD's base of operations. Against the orders of Vince, leader of The Right Arm, the three leave their camp to rescue Minho, who is being tortured by WCKD in hopes of developing a cure for the virus. Heading for the Last City, the group is attacked by Cranks, humans infected with the Flare. However, they are saved by Jorge and Brenda, who join them.

The group makes it to the wall of the Last City, which protects the city from Cranks. Outside the wall, people are rallying in protest to be let into the city. When WCKD opens fire at the protesters, the group is captured by a contingent of masked men and are taken to a hideout. One of the masked men is revealed to be Gally, who survived Minho's attack. Gally takes them to see Lawrence, a rebellion leader for those outside the walls, who helps them enter the Last City through a secret entrance. Gally leads Thomas and Newt through to the city and, spotting Teresa, Gally tells Thomas that he can get them into WCKD headquarters. Metode penelitian eksperimen adalah. Newt then confides to Thomas that he is infected. Promising to cure him, the three capture Teresa.

Disguised as WCKD soldiers, Thomas, Newt, and Gally escort Teresa inside WCKD headquarters and toward the location of the Immunes. Gally looks after the Immune children and stays to find a serum that slows the Flare, while Thomas, Newt, and Teresa go to find Minho. They are discovered and chased by Janson. Teresa lets them escape to find Minho before rushing to do a blood test on Thomas' blood, which she obtained when removing trackers from the Gladers.

Having delivered the Immune children and the serum to Brenda, Gally returns to WCKD headquarters to find Thomas. Brenda is forced to flee with the Immune children to avoid capture. Thomas and Newt reunite with Minho in the medical wing. Teresa discovers that Thomas' blood can cure the Flare. She shares her discovery with WCKD's leader, Ava Paige, both agreeing that they must find Thomas. Brenda and the Immune children escape WCKD with Frypan's help. Meanwhile, Lawrence rallies his rebels outside the city before blowing a hole in the city wall, sacrificing himself to allow his allies and the infected people to storm the city. Gally finds Thomas, Minho, and Newt. Newt, sending Minho and Gally ahead to get the serum from Brenda, gives Thomas a pendant before passing out. Teresa transmits her voice throughout the city, telling Thomas that his blood can save Newt if he will only return to WCKD. Newt, nearly consumed by the Flare, regains consciousness and attacks Thomas, while begging Thomas to kill him. When Thomas refuses, Newt – left with no other option – stabs himself.

Thomas makes his way back to WCKD and confronts Ava. However, she is killed by Janson, who is infected by the Flare. Janson knocks Thomas out and drags him to a lab where Teresa is ready to extract his blood. However, he reveals that he is only truly interested in curing himself and others that he feels are worthy, which results in Teresa turning on him. After a fight, Janson is killed by Cranks, allowing Thomas and Teresa to escape to the rooftop, where Teresa gives Thomas a vial with the cure. Their allies suddenly appear in an aircraft: Thomas makes it aboard, but Teresa dies when the headquarters collapses in on itself.

The group reunites with the rest of the Immunes and The Right Arm, escaping to a safe haven, where the remaining population can live in safety. There, Thomas discovers that the pendant Newt gave him had a note in it. Still traumatized by his friends' deaths, he reads the note, in which Newt tells him to look after everyone, before thanking Thomas for being his friend. While standing on the beach and looking out towards the ocean, Thomas takes the vial of the cure out of his pocket and looks expectantly into the sunrise.

Cast[edit]

• Dylan O'Brien as Thomas
• Kaya Scodelario as Teresa
• Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Newt
• Dexter Darden as Frypan
• Nathalie Emmanuel as Harriet
• Giancarlo Esposito as Jorge
• Aidan Gillen as Janson
• Walton Goggins as Lawrence
• Ki Hong Lee as Minho
• Jacob Lofland as Aris
• Katherine McNamara as Sonya
• Barry Pepper as Vince
• Will Poulter as Gally
• Rosa Salazar as Brenda
• Patricia Clarkson as Ava Paige

Production[edit]

In March 2015, it was confirmed that T.S. Nowlin, who co-wrote the first and wrote the second film, would adapt Maze Runner: The Death Cure.^[3] On September 16, 2015, it was confirmed that Ball would return to direct the final film.

Filming[edit]

Principal photography began on March 14, 2016, in Vancouver, British Columbia.^[4][5] Previously it was revealed at San Diego Comic-Con International that filming would begin in February 2016.^[6]

On March 18, 2016, it was reported that actor Dylan O'Brien was injured on set and was hospitalized. James Dashner announced via Twitter that the production was postponed after the accident.^[7] It was said that the producers were 'looking to' resume filming around mid-May.^[8] According to the Directors Guild of Canada's production list, the film was scheduled to resume filming on May 9, and complete principal photography on July 26. However, on April 29, 2016, production was shut down indefinitely as O'Brien's injuries were more serious than previously thought.^[9]

Filming resumed on March 6, 2017 in Cape Town, South Africa.^[10][11][12] In May 2017, it was announced that Walton Goggins would play the part of Lawrence, described as 'an unusual and dangerous character who is part-revolutionary, part-anarchist, and a voice for the voiceless people.'^[13] Principal photography wrapped on June 3, 2017.^[14]

Visual effects[edit]

The visual effects are provided by Weta Digital and Supervised by Chris White^[15]

Release[edit]

It was originally scheduled to be released in the United States on February 17, 2017.^[16] However, due to Dylan O'Brien's injuries, the studio said that it was unlikely that this date was going to be met.^[9] On May 27, 2016, 20th Century Fox rescheduled the film for January 12, 2018,^[17] allowing time for Dylan O'Brien to fully recover.^[18]

On April 22, 2017, the studio delayed the release date once again, to February 9, 2018, in order to allow more time for post-production; months later, on August 25, the studio moved the release forward two weeks.^[19][20] The film premiered on January 26, 2018, in theatres and IMAX.^[21][22]

Home media[edit]

Maze Runner: The Death Cure was released on Blu-Ray and DVD on April 24, 2018.^[23]

Reception[edit]

Box office[edit]

Maze Runner: The Death Cure grossed $58million in the United States and Canada, and $230.1million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $288.2million, against a production budget of $62million.^[2]

In the United States and Canada, The Death Cure was released alongside the wide expansion of Hostiles, and was expected to gross around $20 million from 3,786 theaters in its opening weekend.^[24] The film made $1.5 million from Thursday night previews, in between the $1.1 million made by the first film and $1.7 million by the second, and $8.4 million on its first day. It ended up opening to $24.2 million, down from the previous film but still finishing atop the box office.^[25] In its second weekend the film dropped 57% to $10.5 million, finishing second behind Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.^[26]

A week prior to its North American release, the film debuted in South Korea, Australia and Taiwan, grossing $15.1 million over its opening weekend.^[24] During the first two weeks of international release, the film dominated the international box office taking $62.6 and $35.2 million respectively, and outpacing the two previous films.^[27][28]

Critical response[edit]

On review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 43% based on 163 reviews, and an average rating of 5.14/10. The website's critical consensus reads, 'Maze Runner: The Death Cure may offer closure to fans of the franchise, but for anyone who hasn't already been hooked, this bloated final installment is best left unseen.'^[29] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 51 out of 100, based on 37 critics, indicating 'mixed or average reviews'.^[30] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of 'B+' on an A+ to F scale.^[25]

Accolades[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^'MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE (2018) (12A)'. British Board of Film Classification. January 17, 2018. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
2. ^ ^abc'Maze Runner: The Death Cure'. Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
3. ^Busch, Anita (March 4, 2015). ''Maze Runner: The Death Cure' Sets T.S. Nowlin To Pen'. Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
4. ^'The Maze Runner 3 to begin filming in Vancouver in March'. Vancity Buzz. January 18, 2016. Retrieved February 8, 2016.^{[permanent dead link]}
5. ^A., Aliza (March 9, 2016). ''The Maze Runner: Death Cure' News And Updates: Filming Confirmed; Release Date Set On February'. Jobs & Hire. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
6. ^@ClevverTV (July 9, 2015). 'The script for Death Cure is currently being worked on & will begin filming in February #ScorchTrials #ScorchSneakPeek' (Tweet). Retrieved July 10, 2015 – via Twitter.
7. ^Zumberge, Marianne (March 18, 2016). ''Maze Runner' Star Dylan O'Brien Injured on Set'. Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
8. ^Malkin, Mark (April 5, 2016). 'Maze Runner Star Dylan O'Brien Healing Very Well After On-Set Accident, Will Return to Work in About Six Weeks'. E!. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
9. ^ ^abFord, Rebecca; Kit, Borys (April 29, 2016). 'Dylan O'Brien's Injuries Force 'Maze Runner' Sequel to Extend Production Shut Down'. The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
10. ^Wilson, Lena (August 29, 2016). 'Maze Runner: The Death Cure Resumes Filming In February'. Screen Rant. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
11. ^Bailey, Ian (September 4, 2016). 'Maze Runner film production leaving B.C. for South Africa'. The Globe and Mail. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
12. ^Ball, Wes [@wesball] (March 2, 2017). 'Big day today. Shot two scenes in 7 hours (that's a short day for me). Also prelit a set for tomorrow. Then watched dailies.. Pretty stuff' (Tweet). Retrieved April 23, 2018 – via Twitter.^{[non-primary source needed]}
13. ^Hipes, Patrick (May 10, 2017). 'Walton Goggins Set For 'Maze Runner: The Death Cure''. Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
14. ^Ball, Wes [@wesball] (June 4, 2017). 'That's a wrap! Thanks to a great cast and crew for a hell of an experience' (Tweet). Retrieved April 23, 2018 – via Twitter.^{[non-primary source needed]}
15. ^'MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE - The Art of VFXThe Art of VFX'. www.artofvfx.com. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
16. ^Chitwood, Adam (April 18, 2015). 'MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE Set for 2017 Release; Miraculously Not Being Split into Two Movies'. Collider. Complex Media. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
17. ^'Maze Runner: The Death Cure'. Launching Films. Film Distributors' Association. Retrieved April 1, 2017.
18. ^McNary, Dave (May 28, 2016). 'Dylan O'Brien's 'Maze Runner: Death Cure' Release Pushed Back to 2018'. Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
19. ^Ball, Wes [@wesball] (April 22, 2017). 'Hey maze fans. Don't worry. Release date shifted 4 weeks. It's a good thing. I get four more weeks of vfx finals, sound mixing, editing' (Tweet). Retrieved April 23, 2018 – via Twitter.^{[non-primary source needed]}
20. ^Gallagher, Brian (April 24, 2017). 'Maze Runner 3: Death Cure Gets Delayed Yet Again'. MovieWeb. Watchr Media. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
21. ^Anthony, D'Allessandro (April 22, 2017). ''Deadpool 2', 'New Mutants' & 'Dark Phoenix' Find 2018 Dates Among Fox's Slew of Release Changes & Additions'. Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
22. ^Dave, McNary (August 25, 2017). 'Steven Spielberg's Pentagon Papers Movie Re-Titled 'The Post''. Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved August 26, 2017.
23. ^'Maze Runner: The Death Cure (DVD)'. Amazon. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
24. ^ ^abMcNary, Dave (January 23, 2018). 'Box Office: 'Maze Runner: The Death Cure' Races Toward $20 Million Opening'. Variety. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
25. ^ ^abD'Alessandro, Anthony (January 28, 2018). 'Fox Controls Close To 40% Of Weekend B.O. Led By 'Maze Runner' & Oscar Holdovers; 'Hostiles' Gallops Past $10M'. Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
26. ^D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 4, 2018). ''Jumanji' Poised To Be Dwayne Johnson's Highest Grossing Pic of All-Time Stateside After Super Bowl Weekend Rebound'. Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
27. ^McNary, Dave (January 28, 2018). 'Box Office: 'Maze Runner: The Death Cure' Dominates With $62.6 Million Internationally'. Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
28. ^McNary, Dave (February 4, 2018). ''Maze Runner: The Death Cure' Sprints to $35 Million at International Box Office'. Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
29. ^'Maze Runner: The Death Cure (2018)'. Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved May 20, 2019.
30. ^'Maze Runner: The Death Cure Reviews'. Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
31. ^'Tiffany Young Wins K-pop Female Artist at the 2018 BreakTudo Awards'. allkpop.com. Allkpop. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
32. ^'Teen Choice Awards 2018: See the full list of winners'. EW.com. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 13, 2018.

External links[edit]

• Official website
• Maze Runner: The Death Cure on IMDb