DVD Reviews

Cube Zero

Cube was a brilliant low-budget horror film filled with a diabolically clever plot. Strangers wake up in a gigantic multi-room cube with no idea why they are there. Unfortunately, some of the rooms are booby-trapped and lead to some pretty horrific deaths. When I learned that Cube Zero (a prequel to Cube) would be exploring the reasons for the Cube’s existence, I was worried. The scariest part of the first movie was that there were no explanations. Anyone could wind up in the death trap. Would providing answers to the film’s mystery eliminate what made this series so fascinating?

Cube Zero takes a very different approach to the previous movies. Instead of merely following a group of people inside the Cube, this entry in the series focuses on two of its employees (Zachary Bennett and David Uband) who monitor the victims. As it turns out, the people who work for the Cube know just about as much as the people inside. Sure they can provide a few more answers (people in the Cube sign consent forms), but as the film progresses the two employees begin to question the information they are given.

Cube Zero has an awkward beginning. The scenes inside the Cube are very reminiscent of the first movie, so much so that you can easily predict who is going to die and in what order. These moments just aren’t scary and the characters are pretty thin. The scenes with the employees are not much better and are pretty dull. Instead of providing any interesting background details they just talk about things the viewer already knows from previous movies. Yet, somewhere around the halfway mark, Cube Zero starts to get interesting. Someone escapes which leads to the first truly original scene in the movie. Suddenly Cube Zero starts to distinguish itself from the other films, taking fresh twists, and bringing in Michael Riley as a darkly comedic member of the Cube’s management team. Riley appears to be having a blast as the maniacal Jax and his energy breathes new life into the film. The last half of the movie is worth waiting for and provides some unexpected developments. It all leads to a finale that fits perfectly within the Cube world - answering just a few questions, while asking hundreds more.

The new DVD is very well done starting with the great video transfer. Cube is a dark movie, but there is great detail in the shadows, and the little colour that is used looks fantastic. I really liked the audio tracks. There is a lot of really interesting ambient sound at play in this movie that takes full advantage of the speakers. The special features are decent. The making of documentary is a little disappointing in its lack of behind the scenes footage, but the commentary by director/writer Ernie Barbarash manages to fill in most of the details. There’s a Cube music video (?!?), and some interesting conceptual art and storyboard comparisons as well.

Review By Corey Brown