Movie: Cube (1997)

In a perplexing state of "WTF did I just watch" I bring you Cube (1997, Tubi), written and directed by Vincenzo Natali. It was his first movie! It opened to stellar reviews and gained a metric ton of awards for both film and filmmaker. I don't know how I missed it, except that I was pretty busy in 1997.

Cube is about seven strangers who wake up in a strange room with no memory of how they got there. It's lit up, its got hatches on all sides that open onto rooms just like the one they're in, but different colors. They come to find out that some of the rooms are booby-trapped in a variety of sinister, deadly ways.

 

Cube took me three days to get through. I kept pausing it to come back later.

 

From the premise, it brought to mind this sci-fi story I read when I was really young. It's called House of Stairs, by William Sleator. It's about five teenagers who wake up, with no memory of how they got there, in a strange structure that's all stairways. Like that Escher painting. Eventually we are told who/what/why. The teens all make it out in the end, changed though they may be.

 

But Cube is a different story...one that never answers who/what/why.

 

So, that's Cube. If you like your stories wrapped up in the end, you'll hate it. If, however, you're into psychological/thriller/industrial mystery, give it a whirl! There's a sequel, and at least one remake, so have fun.