Cube Zero (2004)

A young programmer whose job is to watch over the reality-warping Cube defies orders to rescue an innocent mother trapped in one of its rooms.

Director:

Ernie Barbarash

Writer:

Ernie Barbarash

Stars:

Zachary Bennett, Stephanie Moore, Martin Roach

3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Zachary Bennett	...	Eric Wynn
David Huband	...	Dodd
Stephanie Moore	...	Cassandra Rains
Martin Roach	...	Robert P. Haskell
Terri Hawkes	...	Jellico
Richard McMillan	...	Bartok
Mike 'Nug' Nahrgang	...	Meyerhold
Tony Munch	...	Owen
Michael Riley	...	Jax
Joshua Peace	...	Finn (as Josh Peace)
Diego Klattenhoff	...	Quigley
Alexia Filippeos	...	Anna
Jasmin Geljo	...	Ryjkin
Fernando Curcione	...	Doctor
Flossie McKnight	...	Female Doctor (as Araxi Arslanian)

Storyline

Set before the events of the previous films. As group of strangers awaken with no memory to find they have been involuntarily placed in a maze containing deadly traps, a young man whose job is to watch over the Cube endeavors to rescue a woman trapped within.

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Plot Keywords:

cyberpunk | part of a trilogy | third part | room | rescue | 

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Taglines:

The first experiment in fear.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence/gore and some language

Did You Know?

Trivia

The coffee mug on Wynn's desk says "THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX". It can be seen when he is drawing the picture of Rains.

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Goofs

During the chess game in the beginning after Dodd, who is playing White, moves K-Kb8, Wynn then puts him in check by moving Rook takes Quees-check (RxQ+), Dodd's next proceeding move is Bishop to Queen Knight 7 (B-qN7) which would not move his King out of check from the Black Rook on the 8th file which would be required.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Ryjkin: I hate this place.

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Crazy Credits

Zero the fish as himself

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Connections

Follows Cube (1997)

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Soundtracks

Message From Buddha
Performed by Norman Orenstein
Written by Norman Orenstein
Published by Norman Orenstein Music (Socan)

User Reviews

Not Awful, but Unnecessary

Following the release of Cube 2: Hypercube (2003), and playing off the alleged success of the original Cube (1998), Director Ernie Barbarash takes the liberty of bringing us the third installment in the trilogy, the prequel Cube Zero.

Deep in the bowels of a giant and faceless institution, time and place unknown, two low-ranking operators, Wynn (Zachary Bennett) and Dodd (David Huband) sit and observe on monitors the behavior of people that have been placed in a giant network of cubic chambers, some of which are rigged with death traps. Told that the people they are observing are convicted felons who chose this horrific and deadly ordeal over a lethal injection, these observers have had no problem with their jobs until Wynn, a mathematical genius, discovers that one of the prisoners, a woman named Cassandra (Stephanie Moore) never agreed to be put inside the Cube. Suddenly it's realized that perhaps their "jobs" are not what they seem, and that they may be part of something deeply sick and twisted...

For people that have seen and enjoyed the original Cube, this prequel will probably not be to your liking. It's not that the story does not have potential; it's simply that the first Cube film never needed to be expanded on. Standing alone, it is a neat little psychological thriller with very interesting concepts and a certainty about its own message. It was also nicely self-contained. The problem with Cube Zero is that it destroys some of the mystique of the original, attempting to answer questions with more questions but only really resulting in making a mess of what never needed fixing.

What this new film has to offer, which is questions about the psychological nature of authoritarianism and the banality of evil, certainly are good questions to be raised, but probably should have been done so on their own merits, rather than as a continuation of a film that had no such aspirations.

Having said this, the other traits of the film, such as acting and direction and writing, are not awful. There is a bleak, dark look to the film akin to such film noir as 'The Matrix' and 'Dark City', and they have certainly managed to recapture the claustrophobic feeling of the first Cube. Unfortunately for Barbarash, these are not enough positive qualities to save it.

Details

Country:

Canada

Language:

English French Spanish

Release Date:

22 February 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cube Ø

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

CAD1,200,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mad Circus Films, Lions Gate Entertainment, Mr. X

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1