Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		2.5

Dark Web: Cicada 3301 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 18, 2021

If something is pretty widely known to a large segment of at least one demographic of the public, can it truly be called "hidden" on the so-called "dark web"? Now, I am unashamed to admit that if the real life news of Cicada 3301 ever crossed my feed, I promptly forgot about it, but both of my millennial sons instantly knew quite a bit about the supposed organization that intrigued codebreakers by posting online (and other media) puzzles that were ostensibly near impossible to crack. Rumors soon grew that the entire enterprise was a convoluted recruiting tool for operations like the NSA or even the Masons. (The latter brings to mind an actual recurrent social media job offering that kind of hilariously has shown up for me repeatedly, urging me to come work for the Illuminati.) Dark Web: Cicada 3301 concerns a bartender named Connor (Jack Kesy) who also just happens to be a math and code savant with an eidetic memory (of course) who stumbles on the whole Cicada 3301 phenomenon when he's busy hacking various aspects of the ID of a customer at his bar who had been rude to one of his waitresses. Most of the story is told courtesy of flashbacks as Connor testifies before the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, and part of what at least initially gives this film some comedic energy is that Connor is most definitely an "unreliable narrator". He seems especially intent on making a gaggle of NSA agents who are on the prosecution side of the case (one of whom is played by co-writer and director Alan Ritchson) look like idiots, and so the supposed flashbacks often careen off into ludicrous sidebars, some of which are admittedly funny. However, Dark Web: Cicada 3301 goes a bit too gonzo for its own good, and about halfway through the film, things start to segue from baseline amusement to annoyance.

A gaggle of people who join together to solve a series of mind boggling puzzles might instantly evoke memories (eidetic or otherwise) of efforts like Dispatches from Elsewhere: Season 1, and there are indeed analogs between the two offerings, though what initially sets Dark Web: Cicada 3301 apart is its deliberate sense of humor. The film actually begins with a vignette that shows Connor in some sort of a predicament involving a computer and a group of interlopers trying to break into the room where he is. His slyly sarcastic voiceover documenting what's going on makes it all seem like it's just "another day at the office", though with Connor prominently featured as an "agent" of near James Bond acuity. That scene then transitions to the court setting, which serves as an interstitial throughout the rest of the film, typically with one or more of the panel of judges questioning the veracity of Connor's testimony.

There are any number of ways even in the early going where Dark Web: Cicada 3301 is ludicrous to the point that many viewers will be constantly rolling their eyes at the proceedings, but the first half or so of the film is reasonably enjoyable, as Connor first finds out about Cicada 3301 and then becomes obsessed. He is soon joined in his quest by his friend Avi (Ron Funches) and a librarian named Gwen (Conor Leslie). Meanwhile, he's abducted by a bunch of NSA agents, including Sullivan (Andreas Apergis), who is ostensibly in charge, and Sullivan's dunderheaded assistant Carver (the aforementioned Alan Ritchson). The interplay between Sullivan and Carver does provide some laughs along the way, including in the first showdown between the agents and Connor where Carver just goes ballistic, and Sullivan tells him to tone it down. Carver responds that he thought Sullivan had told him they were doing the "good cop - bad cop" routine, to which Sullivan answers, "No, I said you were a bad cop." Connor seems to especially enjoy hassling the meatheaded Carver in the court scenes, which provides a bit of spark to the proceedings.

If the film kind of goes off the rails beginning with a completely ridiculous scene in a supposed rare book archive (where of course Connor just rips a page out of a priceless volume because it contains a clue), there are all sorts of subplots in Dark Web: Cicada 3301 that are left unexplained and/or unexplored. Presentational quirks like some onscreen text (see screenshots 7 and 10) show up early in the film, never to be seen again, and supporting characters like Connor's apparently deaf landlord and a little girl in his apartment building named Sophia (Alyssa Cheatham) are just left hanging. There seems to be a rather major plot point involving Sophia that didn't survive the cutting room floor, other than some patently odd momentary flashbacks (within the "major" flashback), which is only more or less fully explained in one of the deleted scenes included on this disc as a supplement.

The result is a kind of haphazard but intermittently appealing story that could have used some tightening in the writing department. The bantering interplay between many of the characters provides some genuine enjoyment, but too often the film dissipates its own momentum with odd detours and a lack of logic. The performances are generally winning, and a couple of the sight gags that ensue from Connor's "unreliable narration" may provoke a guffaw or two, at least for those who have what might be called "frat boy" senses of humor.

Dark Web: Cicada 3301 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Dark Web: Cicada 3301 is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.00:1. This is another contemporary outing whose technical data points are nowhere to be found on the dark web or even the light web, at least insofar as I can tell. I'm assuming this was a digitally captured production that had a 2K DI. The results are frequently appealing looking, with generally nice detail levels and an often well saturated palette. Fine detail can be expressive, including on things like the natty suit jacket Funches is first seen in. CGI work is also decently done, though some of it is probably intentionally hokey looking, as in some supposed "holographs" that Connor encounters when he finally makes it to that well known annual event, the Cicada 3301 Masquerade Ball. Most of the court scenes are subtly graded toward blue tones, but much of the rest of the presentation looks natural.

Dark Web: Cicada 3301 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Dark Web: Cicada 3301 features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track the provides bursts of surround energy in scenes like the opening fracas that includes an explosion, or notably the big party sequence that provides the climax to the story. A lot of the film tends to play out in simpler dialogue scenes, and while there is at least occasional engagement of the side and rear channels, typically for ambient environmental effects, many of these scenes tend to keep things front and center. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout, and there are also optional English SDH and Spanish subtitles available.

Dark Web: Cicada 3301 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary with Director /Writer / Producer ALan Ritchson, Producer DJ Viola and Co-Producer / Production Designer Burns Burns


• Deleted Scenes (1080p; 10:47) play with a timecode caption.


• Dark Web: Cicada 3301 Trailer (1080p; 2:43)

Additionally, a digital copy is included.

Dark Web: Cicada 3301 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

One data point that did make it to online sources is the fact that the Dark Web part of the film's title was evidently added later, something that is pretty obvious even from the way the credits are structured. That may have been to alert the uninformed (like yours truly) as to the provenance of the rest of the film's title, but like so much else in this production, it just seems random and kind of unnecessary. Fans of the film's cast or those with an interest in the real story of Cicada 3301 may find some intermittent enjoyment here. Technical merits are generally solid for those who are considering a purchase.