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nuxvomica

(14,017 posts)
63. Dave Made a Maze (2017)
Fri Feb 20, 2026, 02:23 PM
Feb 20
After a weekend away, Annie comes home to discover her boyfriend, Dave, has spent the time constructing a maze of corrugated cardboard in the middle of their apartment. It looks about the size of a camping tent but somehow Dave is stuck inside it. He pleads for help and warns that "it's bigger than it looks from the outside." So begins a funny, absurd and sometimes dark adventure as Annie leads a fellowship of Dave's slacker friends into his incomprehensible creation: a ramshackle labyrinth of corrugated cardboard, full of booby traps, transformative portals, grand caverns, flying origami birds and, of course, a minotaur. The maze itself is alive, and growing and Dave realizes the only way to escape it is to complete it.

The film is quirky and silly most of the time, but there are scenes where the filmmakers' high degree of set craftsmanship and unwavering commitment to a crazy story are astonishing. It will remind you of every makeshift fort you built as a kid and manages to evoke those fleeting moments of childhood when you actually believed you had to jump from the couch to the coffee table because for a split second the floor really, really, really was made of lava. It's a fun ride, mining laughs from unexpected places and perfectly-timed, deadpan social commentary. Half-way through, Dave delivers an impromptu speech, a Millenials' lament that concisely indicts the barrenness of 21st-century existence. Fundamentally, "Dave Made A Maze" is a thought-provoking rumination on the creative spirit and how it can overwhelm us, and that perhaps we should just let it sometimes.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/11439886


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Recommendations

3 members have recommended this reply (displayed in chronological order):

"Local Hero"... wcmagumba Feb 19 #1
I love that one greatauntoftriplets Feb 19 #7
First title to pop into my head. FalloutShelter Feb 20 #52
The gods must be crazy. Woodwizard Feb 19 #2
THAT one, I did see. some_of_us_are_sane Feb 19 #4
Those look GREAT! some_of_us_are_sane Feb 19 #3
Prospect is my sleeper rec crud Feb 19 #5
Thanks. Never saw it some_of_us_are_sane Feb 19 #10
Cradle Will Rock SleeplessinSoCal Feb 19 #6
Hearts and Souls LogDog75 Feb 19 #8
++1. Moreover, a fine ensemble interaction. Tetrachloride Feb 22 #76
This one is so cute Figarosmom Yesterday #111
The Secret of Roan Inish. greatauntoftriplets Feb 19 #9
YES! Bayard Feb 20 #36
A brilliant and haunting John Sayles movie nuxvomica Feb 20 #65
Black Robe bluedigger Feb 19 #11
This was an excellent film JoseBalow Feb 19 #16
Excellent film! markodochartaigh Feb 20 #37
Indeed! ZZenith Feb 20 #43
Melody (1971) Wiz Imp Feb 19 #12
This one? BootinUp Feb 19 #13
Peanut Butter Falcon Coolgoober Feb 19 #14
love that movie Skittles Feb 19 #15
Andrei Rublev (1966) JoseBalow Feb 19 #17
Nothing But a Man 68er Feb 19 #18
Welcome to DU! red dog 1 Feb 21 #68
Thank you, Red Dog! 68er Feb 22 #84
Or this one? BootinUp Feb 19 #19
"Happy Accidents" skypilot Feb 19 #20
I don't know if it's great, but My Favorite Year chowmama Feb 19 #21
that is definitely a little jewel of a comedy. I loved it nt yellowdogintexas Feb 20 #26
Go tell the Spartans question everything Feb 19 #22
agreed, I had it lower in the thread -- JT45242 Feb 20 #54
One of my FAVORITES.... from 1949 some_of_us_are_sane Feb 19 #23
I'll second that one. Jeebo Feb 20 #33
"The Conversation" with Gene Hackman directed by Francis Ford Coppola mucifer Feb 19 #24
that is a great and very tense movie nt yellowdogintexas Feb 20 #28
LA SORCIRE (1956) -- THE BLONDE WITCH Marina Vlady's Dark Spell French Film Noir question everything Feb 20 #25
The Magie of Belle Isle yellowdogintexas Feb 20 #27
Beautiful movie. niyad Feb 20 #41
A Man Called Ove (original Swedish version, NOT the American A Man Called Otto) chia Feb 20 #29
I love the Swedish version so much! HeartsCanHope Feb 20 #47
Yes, Lassgrd was perfect, and unforgettable. chia Feb 20 #59
I'm not sure this one is exactly little known - Starman... 3catwoman3 Feb 20 #30
Bottle Shock... Enter stage left Feb 20 #31
One of my favourites. niyad Feb 20 #40
Mel Brooks named Bottle Shock as one of his favorite movies, too. blm Feb 22 #82
I saw that a few years ago. Aristus Sunday #95
A similar tale, from Oregon's Pinot Noir region NeoTrajan Sunday #103
Hammett. boonecreek Feb 20 #32
The Wall Jeebo Feb 20 #34
Until the End of the World. fierywoman Feb 20 #35
Two with Johnny Depp Bayard Feb 20 #38
Another one from Johnny Depp: "Cry Baby". When John Waters went mainstream. Wiz Imp Feb 20 #49
Never heard of that one Bayard Feb 21 #70
My daughter's favorite movie as a kid. Rachel Sweet sings the female lead. blm Feb 22 #81
James Intveld does the singing for Johnny Depp. Wiz Imp Feb 22 #87
Cry-Baby is an awesome movie! Mad_Dem_X Sunday #93
Agreed on all of those. MuseRider Sunday #101
"A Woman Rebels" and "Grace Quigley", both with Katharine Hepburn. niyad Feb 20 #39
The Lobster 2015 jgo Feb 20 #42
Bizarre, soul-crushing little film. Aristus Sunday #96
Big Night deserved way more accolades than it got. ZZenith Feb 20 #44
The final five minutes or so rank high in the best silent acting ever. Aristus Sunday #97
Agreed. ZZenith Sunday #100
Yes it did deserve more notice Figarosmom Yesterday #112
A Room with a View. CTyankee Feb 20 #45
"The World's Fastest Indian" starring Anthony Hopkins... GReedDiamond Feb 20 #46
'La Pacte des Loups' OldBaldy1701E Feb 20 #48
Lonely are the Brave VGNonly Feb 20 #50
The Adventures of Baron Munchausen; The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Ferrets are Cool Feb 20 #51
Two classic foreign films: Das Boot and Au Revoir Les Enfants JT45242 Feb 20 #53
I loved Jo Jo Rabbit genxlib Feb 20 #55
"Meantime" film by Mike Leigh. Onthefly Feb 20 #56
"The Commitments" bringing soul music to Dublin Ritabert Feb 20 #57
Great movie! red dog 1 Feb 22 #73
Good to know. Ritabert Feb 22 #74
"Romeo is Bleeding" w/Gary Oldman & Lena Olin. CrispyQ Feb 20 #58
I LOVE this movie. skypilot Feb 20 #66
7 Up. Documentary crew visits people every seven years and document their lives. Midnight Writer Feb 20 #60
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Emile Feb 20 #61
Little Known? red dog 1 Feb 21 #69
Aronofsky's Pi markodochartaigh Feb 20 #62
I loved Pi. Darren Aronofsky was finally able to get the rights back TexasBushwhacker Feb 21 #72
Dave Made a Maze (2017) nuxvomica Feb 20 #63
The other night I came across a movie called 25th Hour milestogo Feb 20 #64
Closely Watched Trains (1966) JoseBalow Feb 20 #67
Matewan 1987 VGNonly Feb 21 #71
The Arrival. An alien invasion flick starring Charlie Sheen. I found it very entertaining. Borogove Feb 22 #75
Mucize (Turkish) The Miracle. (2015) Tetrachloride Feb 22 #77
Never Cry Wolf Tetrachloride Feb 22 #78
Trollhunter Tetrachloride Feb 22 #79
Breaking Away UpInArms Feb 22 #80
Sordid Lives. nt Trueblue Texan Feb 22 #83
I love that film LearnedHand Sunday #91
Some Girls (1988)... LuvLoogie Feb 22 #85
Some Girls. Aristus Sunday #98
That hair. That face. Her aloofness. LuvLoogie Sunday #99
So many great one here and some I'm adding to my must see list EverHopeful Feb 22 #86
A Boy And His Dog Movie came out in 1975 Bluestocking Feb 22 #88
Rare Exports (2010): Finland Morbius Feb 22 #89
Several that I like -misanthroptimist Saturday #90
Start the Revolution Without Me LogDog75 Sunday #92
Kevin Reynolds' "The Beast Of War" from 1988. Aristus Sunday #94
Avenue Montaigne Lulu KC Sunday #102
The Death of Stalin The Blue Flower Sunday #104
My parents took me to see "Robin And Marian. I was seven. Aristus Sunday #107
Not a movie for kids The Blue Flower Monday #108
The Quiet Girl KT2000 Sunday #105
Man from Earth Dear_Prudence Sunday #106
Thanks, watching it on TUBI for free. Emile Yesterday #114
Wife and I enjoyed the movie. Great ending! Emile 4 hrs ago #115
Perfume, The Story of a Murderer. miyazaki Monday #109
A Simple Favor Figarosmom Yesterday #110
Earthworm Tractors - Joe E. Brown 1936 comedy Emile Yesterday #113
The Girl, the Gold Watch and Everything- John D. MacDonald justaprogressive 2 hrs ago #116
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