Cube (Signature Series) Starring Nicole de Boer, David Hewlett Directed by Vincenzo Natali Rated R for some strong sci-fi violence/gore and language *** out of **** Stars, Movie Grade: B

Theatrical Release:
Running time: 90 minutes

by Kevin Lang

"Cube," directed by Vincenzo Natali, tells the suspenseful story of a group of people, who each wake from sleep to find themselves trapped in one of the square 25 by 25 foot rooms of a much larger cube structure. The characters soon discover that some of the rooms have been designed to include deadly booby traps, and their chance of getting out alive seems almost hopeless.

This is the basic premise of "Cube," which at first seems like just an imaginative horror movie, but after watching the relationships develop among the characters, it is not hard to see that "Cube" attempts to offer something more.

One of the characters trapped inside had worked on the design of the outer shell of the structure, never really questioning or knowing what its purpose was as a whole. This is the general theme, that we as a society are ignorant of the bigger picture. We all contribute to society's demise as well as our own. We live with tunnel vision. We are oblivious to what is really happening as a result of our actions. We also choose to ignore and thus often fail to prevent the detrimental actions of others.

Therefore, in a sense, "Cube" is implying that all of the characters in an indirect way helped to build the cube, which is probably why we never learn about any one person or group of people being behind it. This deeper meaning works on some levels, but is ultimately not touched upon enough to significantly stimulate our thinking. Instead, "Cube" remained more an original horror movie than anything else.

For a different kind of horror movie, I liked "Cube." At times, it feels like "X-Files," at other times like "Hellraiser," but in the end, it had a voice all its own.

"Cube" Review written April 14, 2003, CTF.

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