Oxygen
Suspenseful sci-fi mystery has peril, language, violence.
Kids say
Based on 4 reviews
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Oxygen
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this movie.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that this French mystery could upset some viewers with sustained peril, graphic images, and its treatment of death and illness. Oxygen (Oxygène) also touches on broader concepts concerning the future of humankind and the ethics of scientific research and discovery that some viewers could find disconcerting. The main character, a doctor, demonstrates courage, intellect, and presence of mind in facing down her fears and unraveling the mystery of why she's woken up in a pod, who and where she is, and how she can save her own life before she runs out of oxygen. Her future is uncertain and she imagines herself suffocating. She's nearly stabbed by automated needles carrying sedatives or even lethal injections, receives repeated electric shocks, and pulls bloodied tubes and long needles out of her body and inserts them back in. She sees dead human bodies with holes blown through them. She remembers a loved one dying (including spitting up blood) from an unnamed virus. Laboratory rats are experimented on, tortured, and killed. In flashbacks, she and a man kiss and she smokes cigarettes. Language includes "f--king," "s--t," "a--hole," "hell," "damn." The film was reviewed in its original French with English subtitles.
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What's the Story?
In OXYGEN, a woman (Mélanie Laurent) awakes inside a futuristic cocoon. She quickly learns she's running out of oxygen. Unsure of where the pod is or how she got there, the woman begins asking questions of the pod's artificially intelligent operation system, known as MILO, for Medical Interface Liaison Operator (voiced by Mathieu Almaric). She's able to make some calls to the outside world and use MILO to search the internet and archives to uncover her own identity. She quickly realizes she doesn't know who she can trust or who is giving her helpful information. Meanwhile, her oxygen levels continue dropping.
Is It Any Good?
This French sci-fi film plays on elements of claustrophobia and suspense to deliver a compelling, though limited, tale. Oxygen takes a big risk by reducing its settings, outside of a few flashbacks, to a single, coffin-sized pod. The film banks on the emotion conveyed by star Mélanie Laurent, alone with a camera close on her face and interacting solely with other voices. Laurent does a convincing job transmitting fear, anger, shock, resignation, and more. For fans of the genre, viewers interested in the futuristic concepts here, and/or fans of Laurent, this will all be enough. For others, the film may feel too limited to maintain interest for the full hour and 40 minutes, even despite plot twists and a cleverly-controlled unspooling of the mystery surrounding the who, what, where, when, why, and how of the character and her unusual predicament.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the premise for Oxygen. What aspects of the story do you feel could be realistic? Which less so?
The film takes several twists and turns as Liz tries to discover who she is and where she is. Did you find the outcome predictable or did the film take you by surprise?
Have you watched any other movies that take place in one small setting like this one? Can you imagine how this movie was filmed? Where could you go for more information?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming: May 12, 2021
- Cast: Melanie Laurent, Mathieu Amalric, Malik Zidi
- Director: Alexandre Aja
- Studio: Netflix
- Genre: Science Fiction
- Topics: STEM, Science and Nature
- Character Strengths: Courage
- Run time: 101 minutes
- MPAA rating: NR
- Last updated: February 17, 2023
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