Amazing original concept

Rating: 8/10 (1 June 2013)

Cube is a low budget Canadian psychological horror film about a group of strangers who wake up in a mysterious cube shaped room with no recollection of how they got there. On each wall, ceiling and floor there are doors leading to identical adjacent rooms. They soon find out that some rooms have deadly traps in them and as a result they are killed off one by one as they make their way through the cube searching for a way out until there are only a few left.
The plot is fairly straightforward and there are no major twists. While the concept of strangers waking up in a horrible place is not exactly original in the horror genre, the setting is well thought out and the viewer is kept longing for answers about the nature of the cube and who is responsible for it. The dialogue is a bit cheesy at times, but it is delivered well by the actors. The characters are a little on the two dimensional side and could have used a bit more exploring.
The acting in cube is convincing. Stars David Hewlett and Nicole De Boer went on to make quite a name for themselves in the science fiction genre, but it is interesting to see them in an early low budget film.
The direction in cube is superb. The tension is held throughout as the characters slowly go insane. Clever use is made of the limited production value. The whole film is shot on one set, the cube room. Each room is the same set, only lit differently and through clever use of cinematography and editing the characters' journey from room to room is believable.
Overall cube is a very good film. Again a film where a strong script and good direction compensates for lack of extensive sets and flashy special effects. Cube is one of those films where, when it's finished, you find yourself asking for more. I definitely recommend checking this one out.