Cube²: Hypercube

Sporadically compelling yet ultimately disappointing, Cube²: Hypercube follows several strangers, including Kari Matchett’s Kate, Geraint Wyn Davies’ Simon, and Grace Lynn Kung’s Sasha, as they find themselves trapped in a series of rooms where the laws of physics are clearly irrelevant – with the movie, much like its superior predecessor, detailing the dwindling survivors’ ongoing efforts at solving the mystery of the title locale. There’s little doubt that Cube²: Hypercube gets off to a less-than-promising start, as Andrzej Sekula kicks off the proceedings with an almost shockingly incompetent sequence that paves the way for an underwhelming opening half hour. It’s just as clear, however, that the movie does improve demonstrably once it passes a certain point, with the narrative’s puzzle-like nature, coupled with an emphasis on head-scratching yet intriguing interludes (eg one of the rooms contains grizzled, parallel-reality versions of two characters), ensuring that the midsection is, for the most part, far more engaging than one might’ve anticipated. The watchable atmosphere begins to palpably dissipate as the film passes the one-hour mark, with the decision to separate the various characters resulting in a final half hour that’s distressingly tedious. (It doesn’t help, either, that the filmmakers offer up an entirely needless human villain.) The unsatisfying and fairly confusing conclusion only compounds the movie’s various problems, and it’s ultimately impossible to label Cube²: Hypercube as anything more than a typically disappointing straight-to-video horror sequel.

** out of ****