25 modern book-to-screen adaptations that didn’t let us down

The Maze Runner

Like with The Hunger Games, The Maze Runner films took another popular young adult book series and brought it to life through a trilogy of action-packed movies. But unlike The Hunger Games, The Maze Runner films arguably do a better job of unraveling James Dashner’s dystopian world than the books do. Some stories just evoke more feeling when you can see them play out on screen.

For one thing, the world Dashner built is far more satisfying to see than it is to envision using your mind alone. Not only does the Maze make a formidable antagonist when you can witness the destruction it causes, but it’s easier to understand the machinations behind the bizarre setting when we’re shown the world instead of merely being told about it. This also later applies to the Scorch and everything involved in WICKED’s conspiracies.

The characters also feel less one dimensional in the films, likely the result of good casting and more screen time being given to characters that the books wrote off as supporting roles only. Not only do the movies allow us to see the inner workings of the side characters Thomas befriends, but they seem to give more feeling to the villains. The members of WICKED almost feel human when you see them on screen, and it creates a multi-faceted narrative when watching the film.