Amazingly intense and ingenious thriller.

Rating: 8/10 (29 February 2012)

Co-writer Vincenzo Natali's movie is one of those that achieves that beautiful combination of being both intelligent and visceral. Natali maintains an uneasy tension the entire time as we follow a limited number of characters through an insane situation. These are strangers that have been gathered for some unknown purpose in a structure that, it turns out, is comprised of a seemingly never ending series of gloomy rooms, some of which come equipped with truly sadistic booby traps. Unfortunately, the characters realize how hard it will be to rely on each other as they struggle to think their way through the maze. Not only does this movie provide some grim and gruesome thrills (and work as something of a forerunner to the "Saw" franchise), but it's an all too believable study of the dark side of human nature, the "masks" that people can wear, and the danger of ignorance when people don't bother to ask questions. Natali and co-screenwriters Andre Bijelic and Graeme Manson keep things nicely ambiguous as to why and how this group of people came to be there, never bothering to answer very many questions themselves. They also do a fine, fine job of keeping things mostly unpredictable, not killing off certain characters when we think they will, and using both script and performance to have the audience eventually realize that we had some of the characters wrong. There are also delicious jolts along the way in terms of gore, as one character is diced right at the beginning, and another gets their face melted right down. The design of the movie is absolutely incredible, with the various rooms enhanced by various lighting schemes; the wonderful production design is by Jasna Stefanovic, the art direction by Diana Magnus, and the cinematography by Derek Rogers. The music by Mark Korven is effectively sinister without ever becoming too intrusive. The acting is solid, with Nicole de Boer playing Leaven, the math expert who's the most likable of them all, the commanding Maurice Dean Wint as Quentin, David Hewlett (who also worked with Natali on "Splice") as the cagey, cynical Worth, Nicky Guadagni as the nervous Holloway, Andrew Miller as idiot savant Kazan, Wayne Robson as a former jailbird, Rennes, now trapped in another kind of prison, and the briefly seen Julian Richings as Alderson. Horror and thriller fans tired of movies with the same old, same old types of stories are advised to check out the creepy "Cube", a movie that holds interest right up until its decidedly grim resolution. Eight out of 10.