★ 8 / 10
If you enjoy reading my Spoiler-Free reviews, please
Manuel São Bento
If you enjoy reading my Spoiler-Free reviews, please follow my blog @ https://www.msbreviews.com Alexandre Aja caught my attention when he delivered one of the…
If you enjoy reading my Spoiler-Free reviews, please follow my blog @
https://www.msbreviews.com
Alexandre Aja caught my attention when he delivered one of the biggest surprises of 2010, Piranha 3D. A vast majority of viewers expected that film to be absolutely awful, and while I don't exactly love it, I added the director to my list of filmmakers to follow closely. After years of trials and errors, Aja apparently found his great breakthrough with 2019's Crawl. A disaster flick that, once again, people anticipated to be one of the worst movies of the year, and it ended up as one of the very best in the genre, at least in recent memory. Therefore, I was obviously not going to miss Oxygen, a French-speaking film that boasts a highly mysterious premise.
Movies like this make spoiler-free reviews really challenging to put together. This Netflix film possesses dozens of plot twists and impactful revelations that I just can't delve into, so it's tough to share my complete thoughts on the most significant moments of the movie. So, I'll work around the explicit answers to the intriguing questions that ultimately make this film incredibly captivating. Christie LeBlanc offers a fascinating screenplay packed with everything a one-location, claustrophobic, enigmatic thriller should have to be successful. Honestly, it's one of the most well-written scripts I've seen in quite a while within the genre.
For those viewers who hate ambiguous movies, Oxygen is far from it. Every single question raised by the narrative is clearly answered. No viewer will leave disappointed for not understanding hidden meanings or vague themes. However, I can't state this enough: LeBlanc's screenplay holds *dozens* of questions and the same amount of answers. It's impossible to convince everyone in the audience to accept every twist, especially during the revelation-heavy third act. From a specific moment onwards, it's an overwhelming flow of shocking information that might prove too much for some spectators. Nevertheless, most viewers enjoy nitpicking something that isn't present in this film: "movie logic" issues.
If you've seen the film already, you're either going to wholly agree with my latest statement, or you probably think we watched different movies. As usual with this type of problem, it all depends on people's perspective and mentality regarding heavy sci-fi elements or truly advanced technology. In fact, for many audiences all around the world, just the fact that Mélanie Laurent's character is stuck in a futuristic-looking cryogenic pod with a Siri-like AI helping her understand what's happening is already stretching their believability limits. Not everyone can suspend disbelief in the same way, so I won't be surprised if Oxygen receives a more divisive public response.
Nevertheless, I firmly believe this will end up as one of the most overlooked/underrated films of 2021. Aja proves his tremendous talent behind the camera by making an average-length movie inside one of the tiniest places a protagonist was ever stuck in for most of the runtime. Each new block of information about the where, how, why, and when concerning the main narrative is carefully handed to the viewers with *just* the right hints to what's truly going on. Even though the audience is also imprisoned in the same place for almost two hours, Aja and Maxime Alexandre (DP) create innovative, suspenseful manners of keeping the momentum going, never letting the film feel too monotonous or tiresome.
Mélanie Laurent's exceptional performance is one of the most vital elements of the movie. Without her terrific display, it would be extremely challenging to continue to feel invested in the character's mission of finding out everything that's happening to her, including who she is. Her role requires ridiculous emotional range, and Laurent demonstrates all of her immense talent. Technically, the cryogenic pod features impressive technology, some of it created by remarkable VFX. The ominous score by Robin Coudert also brings another layer of mystery and suspense to the already obscure film. Overall, it's a perfect example of how low-budget movies can still be astonishingly well-made.
Finally, Aja and LeBlanc bring several themes to the table, identity maybe being the biggest one. What truly makes us human? Feelings and memories? Physical suffering? It's impossible to dive into this subject without spoiling some of the most shocking moments of the story, but it's only one of many underlying storylines that ultimately make Oxygen a beautiful example of profound storytelling. General topics such as health and politics are also approached, as well as moral dilemmas regarding extremely advanced technology and what humans should do with it. Honestly, it's been three days, I watched two other films meanwhile, and I'm still thinking about this one…
Oxygen is a phenomenal example of one-location filmmaking done right, which will, unfortunately, escape most viewers' radar. Christie LeBlanc's extremely detailed screenplay packs shocking, impactful revelations and plot twists that will leave no one indifferent. Brutal moral dilemmas, surprising discoveries about the mysterious protagonist, and a fantastic one-woman show from Mélanie Laurent keep the slow, flashback-heavy narrative engrossing. Boasting many underlying themes, Alexandre Aja maintains a suspenseful, tense atmosphere with a sense of urgency that never quite leaves the screen. Maxime Alexandre's creative camera work and Robin Coudert's mood-setting score elevate this deep study about human identity without ever feeling too ambiguous. For fans of claustrophobic thrillers with sci-fi elements, Netflix currently holds one of my favorite movies of the year. Highly recommend it.
Rating: A-
★ 6 / 10
An above average Netflix offering
eddie_baggins
Making a name for himself in the horror field with the likes of High Tension, The Hills Have Eyes, Piranha 3D and Crawl, French director Alexandre Aja takes a…
Making a name for himself in the horror field with the likes of High Tension, The Hills Have Eyes, Piranha 3D and Crawl, French director Alexandre Aja takes a different route with his newest outing Oxygen, with this Netflix acquired claustrophobic thriller a more dialed back affair for the boundary pushing director who even showcases a much softer side to himself than his shown previously.
Taking the Buried/Devil approach to proceedings as we spend Oxygen's 100 minute runtime confined to a life supporting medical pod with Melanie Laurent's Liz, who has awoken with no memories of who she is or how she came to be stuck in the pod with a quickly dwindling supply of air, Aja's well-filmed ride may not always be the pulse-pounding thriller it wants to be but thanks to some inventive directing and a committed leading lady, this sweat inducing ride will keep you engaged throughout.
Starting off relatively slowly, with us and Liz trying to figure things out and wondering why we should care for her plight to survive with nothing more than an A. I computer known as MILO to help her, Oxygen does start to ramp things up around the half way mark with more knowledge about what is going on and how Liz came to be found in such a predicament helping the film out in a big way as we all of a sudden start to ride every bump and fall with Liz as her oxygen dwindles and her quest to survive feels more pressing with every passing second.
With strong visuals (and a scene that will go down as one of the years best as we catch a glimpse of Liz's external surrounds), a great score by Robin Coudert and some neat little horror throwbacks from its director, Oxygen feels like a polished and professional offering and a level above other similar Netflix released offerings, ensuring that its high concept idea is bought to life in a strong and satisfying way.
It's not too say the film is able to reach the highs of some of its other similar counterparts, there are numerous moments where the film feels bogged down by repetitive situations and stretches of unengaging scenarios but despite not being able to reach grand heights, Oxygen is a thriller worth checking out and a nice example of Alexandre Aja trying his hand at something a little different from his usual staple.
Final Say -
Ramping up in its latter stages and featuring a great central turn from its leading lady, Oxygen is a solid thriller that might not grip you through its entirety but has enough solid moments to make it worth your time.
3 lab rats out of 5.
90%
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Soon they will make movies like Trying to open a bottle of jam and the lid is stuck!!! Gotta open the jam bottle before toast gets cold.