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Oxygen has a premise which feels a bit similar to Ryan Reynolds’ 2010 movie Buried, where his character was trapped in a particular situation and needs to be rescued quickly, otherwise it could prove fatal, and you’re spending the time with him wondering if he’ll make it.
In the case of Liz (the stunning Mélanie Laurent – The Concert, Enemy, The Round-Up), she wakes up in a cryogenic unit, trapped, wondering how the hell she got there and trying to work out how on Earth she’s going to get out! Seeing her in the dark, with needles stuck in her for reasons not yet explained, and trying to pull one out… is that really wise? I know I wouldn’t be in such a rush to do so.
But then, as some lights come on, she realises she’s in the cryogenic chamber, and naturally, she’s rather freaked out about it, but if you freak out, you’ll use up oxygen, which is best conserved, since if you run out of oxygen, you’ve got a bit of a problem.
Oxygen is almost a real-time drama, and we’re with Liz for the duration as the sole person onscreen, albeit accompanied by the voice of the computer, M.I.L.O (Mathieu Amalric – The Grand Budapest Hotel, Sound Of Metal). For her perilous position, the dropping in oxygen levels means there’s a fault, but after managing to make contact with the outside world, including phoning Capitaine Moreau (Eric Herson-Macarel) from the police, how long will it be until someone comes and deals with it… IF they do?
Obviously, there’s a lot I cannot say about this film because to do so would negate the point of watching it, but it’s safe to say that, like real life for the rest of us, things don’t always go to plan. Plus, it’s amusing that whilst faced with potential death, at one point she damages something inside the pod for reasons which will become clear, and is warned that to do so is a “European federal offence“… erm… like she’s concerned about that?!
I will also add that there’s a couple of flashbacks where we see her living in the most incredible house, and I’d love to know where that is and how much it costs.
Finally, Oxygen has end credits with dot matrix-style computer text printing down the screen, which are incredibly cool.
Oxygen is on Netflix from Wednesday May 12th, but isn’t yet available to pre-order on Blu-ray or DVD.
Check out the trailer below:
Detailed specs:
Cert: 
Running time: 100 minutes
Release date: May 12th 2021
Studio: Netflix
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 (ARRIRAW (4.5K))
Rating: 8/10
Director: Alexandre Aja
Producers: Alexandre Aja, Brahim Chioua, Noémie Devide, Grégory Levasseur, Vincent Maraval
Screenplay: Christie LeBlanc
Music: Robin Coudert
Cast:
Elizabeth Hansen: Mélanie Laurent
M.I.L.O: Mathieu Amalric
Léo Ferguson: Malik Zidi
Capitaine Moreau: Eric Herson-Macarel
Ortiz: Marc Saez
Alice Hansen: Laura Boujenah
Young Liz: Lyah Valade
Alice âgée: Cathy Cerda
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.