On September 18, 2015, the highly anticipated sci-fi/action movie, Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials, hit theaters across the United States. The 132 minute thriller is based on James Dashner’s novel, The Scorch Trials, which is the second book in his renowned Maze Runner series. The film, directed by Wes Ball and starring well-known actors such as Dylan O’Brien (Thomas), Thomas Brodie-Sangster (Newt), Ki Hong Lee (Minho), and Kaya Scodelario (Teresa), received a box office of about $30.3 million over its premiere weekend.

After breaking free from the maze in 2014’s The Maze Runner, Thomas, Newt, Minho, Teresa, and others believe they are transported to a sanctuary away from the horrors of the labyrinth. However, they soon realize their “shelter” is a building owned by WCKD, the organization that put them in the maze in the first place. They manage to escape into the blistering, scorch, which is what is left of the world in this dystopian setting. Nevertheless, while they are on the run, the members of WCKD are at their heels and the characters face problems even worse than the ones they endured in the maze. With people infected with the Flare (a disease that causes people to lose their sanity) will the characters make it out safely?

However, there are distinctive differences between the movie and the book. In fact, there are even more differences between the film and the novel in The Scorch Trials movie than there was in The Maze Runner movie. While there were many changes, some changes were more prominent than others. In the film, the characters go into the scorch voluntarily while in the novel, WCKD forced them to go into the scorch. In the movie, some characters become infected with the Flare while they were not infected in the book. Moreover, the endings of the film and the novel are completely different. Although there were several changes, these alterations did not affect the overall quality of the picture.

Additionally, the visuals department did an extraordinary job in bringing the scorch and those infected by the Flare to life. From the dilapidated buildings, lightning storms, and sandy landscape, viewers who read the novel will be satisfied with how well the setting matches the setting in the book. The people infected with the Flare looked as grotesque, crazed, and horrifying as readers would expect. Viewers will not be disappointed with the graphics and will feel as if they were inside the movie themselves.

With suspense, action, and unexpected twists, the audience will be entertained throughout the entire film. Go get tickets now because this movie is hot enough to see on the big screen.