The Speed Cubers (2020) Review

The Speed Cubers is set in the competitive world of Rubik’s Cube puzzles, during the World Cube Association’s 2019 Championships. With many young people participating, all eyes are on Australian Feliks Zemdegs and American Max Park, who have both had their share of record-breaking wins.

The two constantly keep one-upping each other with their world records. Zemdegs, at a very young age, became the fastest person on earth to solve the 3×3 Rubik’s Cube, only to be defeated by Park years later.

The 2019 Championships sees the entire crowd braced by these two magnetic forces, to an extent that the competition’s highlight is to see these two face off.

The sport of puzzle solving may be fun, but this is not what The Speed Cubers wants you to reflect on. The film approaches the sport as a rare beast, treating the competition differently than what we are accustomed to in other types of sport. If you’re looking for a boss battle-type of a feud between Zemdegs and Park, you will be surprised to learn that it’s the exact opposite.

The Speed Cubers is essentially about the strong friendship between two professional players who wants nothing but pure bliss for each other. It’s the type of film that you watch if you’re looking for a quick dose of positivity after a stressful day.

With a running time of around 40 minutes, the film boasts of meaty storytelling by managing to effectively summarize the lives of Zemdegs and Park in a short time. Although we never truly get to see the two of them professionally competing in a game, you know that they will find a common ground to support each other’s wins or losses despite their competitive mindset.

The Speed Cubers is currently on Netflix, and it may be one of the best offerings on the streaming platform. It’s simply-made, endearing, and is filled with a lot of heart.