Cube Zero

Cube Zero is a 2004 Canadian science fiction psychological horror film written and directed by Ernie Barbarash, in his directorial debut. It is the third installment in the Cube series and a prequel to the first film.

The first two films take place almost entirely within the Cube maze, and Cube Zero is set in both its interior and exterior. It reverts to the industrial-designed, colored rooms of the first Cube, but with a refreshed and redesigned set.

Plot
Ryjkin is a man trying to escape from the Cube. He is sprayed with a liquid that he fears is acid only to find it sweet tasting. He discovers to his horror it is a base that melts his body after a few minutes.

The rooms in the Cube are being monitored from a room by two technicians who are unaware of who their employers are. The pair play chess during work, whereupon Wynn demonstrates abilities which he uses to predict moves.

Wynn and Dodd are ordered to record the dream of a subject. Wynn sees Rains captured while walking in a forest with her daughter. Rains wakes up in the Cube and meets the other occupants. Haskell has the same tattoo on his forehead as the soldier who captured Rains. Haskell only knows his name and has no recollection of his life or how he got there. Everyone in the Cube faced a sentence and volunteered to partake in experiments instead. Rains' form is not found in her file. The captives venture through the Cube. Bartok and Meyerhold are all killed by traps.

A call from their superiors instructs Wynn and Dodd to perform a procedure for Owen who has reached one of the exits of the Cube. The procedure fails after Owen answers no to a question prompting Dodd to push a button which causes Owen to be incinerated. No one has ever answered positively. Wynn concludes that the Cube is inhumane and people are being placed in it against their will.

Dodd is joined in the room by his supervisor Jax and two of his analysts, who have learned of the incident. Jax has the occupants trapped in one room, then electrifies the walls to electrocute them. Dodd relents and sabotages the panels servicing the Cube. This shuts down every trap and initiates a mode, which gives the prisoners ten minutes to escape the Cube as its rooms return to their positions, before a procedure vaporizes everything inside. Jax discovers Dodd's betrayal and kills him, then he activates Haskell's agent through a chip implanted in him. Haskell becomes hostile towards his companions, who struggle to continue their escape and leave him behind. They reach an exit to find Haskell waiting for them. Wynn and Rains manage to jump into the exit right as the procedure starts.

Wynn and Rains swim through water and emerge in a lake. They run through a forest similar to the one seen in Rains's dream, while being chased by soldiers. Wynn is tranquilized and recaptured. He wakes up in a room, where Jax informs him that he has been sentenced for treason, and that he had agreed to become a subject, despite Wynn remembering neither the trial nor signing the consent. Wynn's brain is altered, and he dreams about Rains reuniting with her daughter and praising him as a superhero. Wynn is now handicapped and found by its captives. He mentions the color of the room and that he wants to go back to a room of a different color.

Cast

 * Zachary Bennett as Eric Wynn, a junior Cube technician. A child prodigy and a genius, he is the newest recruit for the Cube.
 * David Huband as Dodd, a senior Cube technician, who is at odds with Wynn for his constant questioning personality.
 * Stephanie Moore as Cassandra Rains, a political demonstrator trapped in the Cube.
 * Michael Riley as Jax, senior supervisor of the Cube, fitted with an artificial eye.
 * Martin Roach as Robert P. Haskell, an ex Cube soldier trapped in the Cube.
 * Mike "Nug" Nahrgang as Meyerhold, a man trapped in the Cube.
 * Terri Hawkes as Jellico, a woman trapped in the Cube.
 * Richard McMillan as Bartok, a man trapped in the Cube.
 * Tony Munch as Owen, a senior cube technician placed in the Cube.
 * Jasmin Geljo as Ryjkin, a man trapped in the Cube.
 * Joshua Peace as Finn
 * Diego Klattenhoff as Quigley

Release
The film premiered at the Screamfest Horror Film Festival on 15 October 2004. It was released on DVD in the United States on 22 February 2005.

Reception
Reviews have been mostly positive, including positive notices from JoBlo.com, AMC's Movie Guide, DVD Talk, and Bloody Disgusting,  with Bloody Disgusting saying that "Cube Zero isn't the best of the series, but it comes close".

Accolades
The film won the award for "Best Special Effects" at the 2004 Screamfest Horror Film Festival.