Adapting a book to a movie is no simple task. Especially for a novel that has woven its way into the lives of thousands of teens across the globe. A bestseller from well-known author James Dashner and directed by Wes Ball, The Maze Runner hit the big screen Sept. 18, with nothing short of meeting great expectations.

The film begins with viewers watching as Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) is locked in a cramped cage with various survival supplies, a trapped wild pig and no recollection of who he is and how he got there. Then the cage is thrown upwards only to come to a shuddering halt just inches from the ceiling. Finally the ceiling doors open, sunlight streams in and Thomas is welcomed by a crowd of rough and tough boys to the Glade.

No one knows who sent them there, why or if they will ever find a way out. Boys climb from the ground without knowing anything of their past or their name. The Glade is situated in the middle of a twisting and turning maze that in the darkness of night shifts, changing and altering its form. As though the confused maze was not enough, there are creatures, Grievers that roam the maze when the sun goes down. At night the gate closes, same time, all the time, and protects the boys from the Grievers looming just outside the walls. They can constantly hear the screams of the beasts and have to keep in mind one solid concept: no one has ever survived a night in the maze. No one has ever seen a Griever and lived to tell the tale.

Each month a cage of supplies and one new “Greenie” emerges from the ground, adding one more member to the population of the Glade. The boys have been searching for a way out for three years; mapping and coursing through the maze yet have never found an exit. Until Thomas arrives, then things begin to change. The life the boys of the Glade knew before is suddenly shifted with the maze and a new breed of challenges arise. The Gladers unease only escalates when the cage erupts from the ground again, but this time far earlier than usual and holding one thing: an unconscious girl, holding a note and knowledge of who Thomas is. In the three years the Gladers have been arriving never once has a girl shown.

Questions are asked, Gladers are accused and Thomas is stuck in the middle of it all. After all, the Glade’s peculiarity arose when he arrived. But there is one thing for certain, Thomas is determined to find a way out and discover who is responsible for putting them in the maze. He wants answers and will die trying to get them.

Special effects and camera movement apply seamlessly to the mood of the film. Grievers, half animal and half machine were created lifelike and almost like a creature straight out of a horror film. This, in combination with fast-paced music at times of thrill and eerie silence grasping scenes of tragedy, provide the viewer with a rollercoaster of emotions throughout the film. The Maze Runner is an edge of your seat, cannot sit still suspense filled with danger and mystery that holds a little something for everyone.