Netflix has been pretty successful with their original content: shows such asOuter Banksand films such as theFear Streettrilogy did so well with audiences that it cemented Netflix as not just a streaming service but as a production company as well. When the Netflix french filmOxygen(French:Oxygène) was released in May 2021, although garnering mainly positive reviews, it didn’t get the same amount of publicity or recognition as past originals.
Oxygenis a unique take on thesurvival subgenreof horror, with an impeccable performance from Mélanie Laurent (Inglourious Basterds). It also tackles the topic of a human race killing virus, although it was in production before Covid ever came to fruition. In reality, though, Alexandre Aja’s (The Hills Have Eyes) film is quite prophetic in its themes about loss, isolation, and an uncertain future.
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Oxygenis about a woman named Elizabeth Hansen, or Liz (Laurent), who wakes in a cryogenic chamber with no memory of where she is or how she got there. All she has is the advanced A.I. she communicates with, who goes by the name “Milo.” Liz uses Milo to gather information on the pod and contact emergency services. When she tells them the cryo unit’s model and serial number, they tell Liz that the unit was destroyed three years ago. Along with this, Liz also soon realizes she only has 100 minutes until her low oxygen levels kill her, and she must escape before it’s too late. The entire film takes place in the chamber, minus the flashbacks that Liz experiences. As the film progresses, her memory begins to unfurl slowly, and she realizes she is a part of something much bigger than she ever thought.
The opening ofOxygenis one of the most intense beginnings of a film. Liz awakens in a panic, screaming and trapped in a cocoon-like wrapping. The camera then shows the small enclosed pot, throwing the viewers into a claustrophobic headspin. The scene then cuts to a jarring close-up of lab rats, accompanied by a high pitch sound of a heartbeat. When Liz escapes from her cocoon, the viewer is immediately attached to Liz and the disorienting journey that will prevail in the 100 minutes duration of the film (also the amount of time she has oxygen for). Aja uses tight camera angles to make the audience quickly identify with Liz as if they are locked in the chamber with her. As Liz gradually begins to distrust any of the people trying to “help” her, the audience sides with her as well.
Due to the majority of the film taking place solely in the chamber,Oxygenrelies on Laurent’s multiplex character instead ofjump scares. When interviewed forNightmarish Conjurings, director Alexandre Aja stated that he wanted Laurent because, “She has this kind of very human emotional side, but, at the same time, she has that full range of being also like smart and connecting and taking you…I mean, it’s a very complex character, and I wanted someone like her to bring and make that complexity.”
Aja does a superb job of slowly building the tension, with disorienting flashbacks and Liz’s heightened paranoia keeping the spectator engaged. The film grows more captivating as it continues, unraveling its mysteries.Oxygenplays out as a panic-stricken game of 100 questions as Liz desperately asks Milo to look through any social media and phone numbers to unveil any memories she has left. She desperately hopes it will connect her to someone who can open the pod with this information. Screenwriter Christie Leblanc does an exceptional job connecting the audience with Liz: As Liz is hopelessly trying to expose any mysteries of her life and how she got there, the audience is looking at clues and trying to uncover the secrets as well.
As Liz looks through her social media, she discovers that she is a cryogenic doctor (is she responsible for this herself?) and she is married to a man named Léo (Malik Zidi). Getting hold of his number, a woman answers. When Liz begs to talk to Léo, the woman sounds angry and confused, hanging up on her multiple times.
Aja puts visual clues throughout the film: lab rats in mazes, medical experiments, flashbacks of a human killing virus, and Liz being a doctor during all of this. All of these clues unfold as the woman on the phone reveals to her that her husband is deadfrom the virus. Liz has been put into hyper-sleep for a 14 light-year expedition to another planet because humankind will be extinct in 20 years due to the virus. This is why the emergency services never located her: they were in on it.
As her oxygen levels fall desperately low, she asks Milo to look for Léo’s pod, discovering he is in hypersleep as well. Noticing his scar is gone from his forehead, she realizes something is wrong. After going deeper into her investigation, she finds a video of herself as an older woman discussing this secret mission. The woman on the phone she was speaking to is the elderly Elizabeth Hansen. Indeed, she is a clone of her younger self, which is why her personality and memories are still there. All the clues come together for this shocking ending;Oxygenthen ends a dream-like scene showcasing the clones of Liz and Léo on the new planet, happy as can be.
Oxygenis a riveting first-time watch; the puzzle pieces fall together at the right time. The visuals and the atmospheric score complement the film’s emotional and mysterious aspects. With the confined camera angles, eerie vibe, and compelling storyline,Oxygenis a tense and claustrophobicsci-fi thrillerthat deserves more recognition.
