A woman wakes in an advanced pod, not knowing exactly what it is or how or why she got there. She only has ninety minutes to find a way out.
Claustrophobic and captivating! From the very beginning, the questions “What’s happening?” and “How on Earth is she gonna make it?” are raised. As the narrative unfolds, the next question is, “What would I do if I were her?” Before even putting it on, Buried (2010) came to my mind, which is probably the most claustrophobic film I have ever watched. Therefore, unintentional comparisons were unavoidable.
Oxygen lets you “catch your breath” a lot more than once, which I’m not sure if it should have. What’s more, I object a tad to its constant non-diegetic sound, and let me tell you why. Without wanting to know for a fact, I would assume that if I were trapped in there, I wouldn’t be listening to any music – just my increased heartbeat and my heavy breathing – the dietetic sound. But that’s just me.
Writer Christie LeBlanc and director Alexandre Aja restrict the narrative till halfway through. What you know is strictly what Liz does. When the subplot becomes clear(er), the twist is revealed, everything starts making sense, and claustrophobia is lost but relatable to all of us drama replaces it. In short, a culminating moment defines the outcome and justifies everything you have found out that far. And that is as far as I go. I hope you enjoy it!
Aja has given us brutal – and I mean brutal – horrors such as Haute Tension (2003), and The Hills Have Eyes (2006), some funny or less believable horrors such as Piranha 3D (2010) and Crawl (2019), but also more psychological or paranormal ones such as Mirrors (2008) and The 9th Life of Luis Drax (2016) – and Horns (2013). Oxygen successfully adds to his list of horror/thriller diversity.
Despite their similarities and differences, I will make only one comparison between Buried and Oxygen: the identical dolly-out shot. I am sure Aja has watched Rodrigo Cortés’ film, and I found it very interesting, even peculiar, that the exact same shot was used. Anyway, if you haven’t watched Buried and you somewhat liked Oxygen, then it’s a must-watch!
Last but most certainly not least, Mélanie Laurent nails her part. Without her superb performance, everything else would have failed. She’s absolutely amazing and gets my round of applause!
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Solidarity for all the innocent lives who suffer the atrocities of war!
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