Slashers have two main ingredients in which to sell their film on: the killer(s) and the setting. Since most slashers follow the same pattern (dumb teenagers do dumb things while a killer is present), each film needs a hook and that hook is a captivating killer and a unique setting. Some slashers have both a captivating killer and a unique setting, while others only supply one, which is fine, as all they need is one.
“The Maze” has one of the main ingredients, that being the unique setting. Director Stephen Shimek and screenwriters Katy Baldwin & Timothy Guiterrez put all of their stock in the corn maze, naming the film after the peculiar setting and branding the entire production around it; even the incredibly cheesy tagline is built around the maze, stating “This is no field of dreams,” evoking memories of “Field of Dreams.” From a marketing standpoint, I commend Shimek, Baldwin, and Guiterrez, as this is a brilliant strategy; it’ll catch the attention of many horror fans, as it did me. Unfortunately, that’s where my commendation of these filmmakers and their film ends.
“The Maze” is, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the dullest slashers I’ve ever had the displeasure of sitting through! Despite only being eighty-six minutes long, it’s way too long and drawn out. I can understand why, as the premise is lean: a group of friends decide to play tag in an abandoned corn maze, only to be stalked by a serial killer. Yes, you read that right, grown adults decide to play tag in a corn maze; they don’t even play it correctly, utilizing the rules of hide & seek mostly. I know slashers typically have dumb characters doing dumb things, but that’s usually because they’re driven by hormones and alcohol; the characters in “The Maze” are just dense.
The filmmakers do try to shake things up by incorporating a twist halfway through the film, taking our survivor(s) out of the corn maze and back into society. I won’t spoil the twist for those of you who are brave enough to view this endurance test of a film, but I will state that it leaves no impact, as the reveal holds no weight for the viewer. What I can discuss without spoiling the film is that, by including this twist halfway through the film, it proves that the gimmick setting can’t sustain itself for a feature-length film, at least not this time around. Shimek doesn’t feel comfortable with the corn maze, seemingly wanting to rush through it as quickly as possible to get to the second act; an act, mind you, that didn’t feel necessary. When I reached the halfway point of “The Maze,” I actually thought the film was wrapping up; there was no indication that a twist was coming, nor needed. By all accounts,
“The Maze” could’ve ended forty-five minutes in, leaving the viewer satisfied (albeit most likely because the film is over, not because of the quality) and leaving things open for a sequel. Instead, Shimek throws in a twist to drag us through another painstaking forty-five minutes, one that he, along with Baldwin & Guiterrez, may feel is ingenious and engrossing, but it’s ultimately dry and limp.
I haven’t even touched upon the characters mainly because they don’t have much to them. The victims in “The Maze” are just that: victims. Each character feels like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered. The only character to have any semblance of a personality is Jordan (Shalaina Castle), and that’s only because she’s the main protagonist. Even then, Jordan leaves a lot to be desired; I never felt a connection to her, more and less feeling forced to root for her because the script says so. The only thing that stands out about the characters is that they’re all too stupid to simply run through the corn to escape the killer, as they all try to navigate the corn maze. I understand the gimmick is centered around the corn maze, but that doesn’t mean the characters have to idiotically adhere to its rules.
The victims aren’t the only people in “The Maze” that leave a lot to be desired, as the killer, the other main ingredient in a slasher, does too. Most slashers have a gimmick to them; they tend to be a hulking force of nature and/or a wisecracking sociopath. In “The Maze,” the killer’s gimmick is that he wears a red hoodie. The killer isn’t a beast of a man or have any semblance of personality, but is simply an anonymous person with an unintimidating physique. I can see where the filmmakers were coming from with this approach, trying to evoke a sense of dread surrounding someone who could be just another face in the crowd; they don’t even give him a legend, as he’s just some guy. However, there is no mystique or imposing threat from this killer. Instead of being intimidating, the killer, whom I’ve dubbed Red Riding Hoodie, comes across as lazy, both from his presence and technique and from the filmmaker’s side of things. It’s as if they just grabbed a hoodie off the shelf and thought to themselves, “That’ll do.” The twist halfway through tries to make the killer seem more intimidating and shocking, but it’s too little, too late.
There’s not much more for me to say about “The Maze,” as there’s really not much to the film. Our dense characters (poorly) play a game of tag in a corn maze (that’s never used to its full potential, by the way), they get stalked (poorly) by Red Riding Hoodie, there’s a (poorly conceived) twist halfway through, and then the (poor) film is over. None of the kills are creative enough to be remembered, none of the characters are engaging enough to be remembered, the twist isn’t powerful enough to be remembered, and the corn maze (the film’s only selling point) isn’t utilized well enough. There’s nothing to “The Maze,” except for eighty-six minutes of my life that I’m never getting back.
Final Rating: D-