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Oxygen

Oxygen

List Price: $9.98
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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Don't suffer this "movie"
Review: No pausible plot, bad dialogue, cheap scenario, no depth of police/FBI procedure, pathetic use of psychology and so full of holes (E.g When trying to trace the kidnapper's stolen car while in pursuit, the police reply "no fingerprints, no witnesses". Like where would a thief leave fingerprints at the place the car was stolen!" The best part of this movie save for perhaps the music is wathcing the word OXYGEN appear at the end.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: TAKE A DEEP BREATH
Review: OXYGEN is a subtly breathtaking thriller that derives its cinematic tension from the performances and the very idea of the horrible act the psychotic perpetrates, with no remorse or conscience.
Adrien Brody (pre PIANIST) gives a dynamic, controlled and skin-crawling performance as "Harry Houdini" who has kidnapped the wife of a wealthy businessman, buried her alive, and asking for a million dollars to tell where he's buried her.
Maura Giveney is superb as the alcoholic detective, who is married to her boss (Terry Kinney). Whether this kind of nepotism is realistic is not important, as their relationship is very human and very real.
Tierney makes the mistake of facing Brody in the interrogation room, where he manages to take the upper hand in picking away at her weaknesses.
Laila Robins as the burial victim offers a strong, gutwrenching performance as a woman pleading for her life, yet remaining as strong as the situation allows.
There's measured suspense in wondering if Brody will ever tell anyone where Robins is; he's a master of smart-talk, cool control and out and out disgusting. An Oscar nomination would have been appropriate, had the movie had a better release.
A tense, disturbing little thriller with an unusual ending.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Oxygen - a breath of fresh air!
Review: Oxygen is an ambitious, if little-known thriller. In its short, feature-length span it manages to approach a depth of characterization usually felt in the longer form of the crime novel. It stars Adrian Brody and Maura Tierney when they were far less famous than they are today; it's amazing what a few years can mean to a career. One need only look to this film for validation that their present stature is well deserved (Brody was the star of The Pianist; Tierney is one of the bright spots on TV's ER). Brody plays a narcissistic maniac who buries women alive to extort ransom money. Tierney is the troubled cop who pursues and confronts him and, in so doing, must confront her own demons. A great supporting cast, and a crackling-good script by its young writer-director-producer Richard Shephard make Oxygen - pun not intended - a breath of fresh air. I would give it five stars but there was something a little uneven about the film - perhaps the direction, which was hokey in parts (watch for the brief scene where cops search the city for the Brody character's orthodontist). This may be a case of nitpicking, but the film tended to feel "flat" in spots. These weaknesses are more than compensated for, however, and I heartily recommend this film to fans of thriller, horror, and crime genres. Add the fifth star if you're a fan of Brody or Tierney.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Suspense-filled Thriller
Review: Oxygen is the type of movie that would interest anyone who likes a good thriller. The movie was very well acted, and Adrien Brody does a splendid job of interpreting the character of the sadistic Harry. Maury Tierney also stars as the detective out to catch him. The two share a chemisty on camera that is quite unique and adds to the tension and yet similarities between the two extremely different characters.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Taut Crime Thriller
Review: This made for TV psychological crime thriller exceeded my expectations. The story begins with the abduction of a rich wife for ransom. She is buried alive and her abductor sets about collecting the ransom for the location of her grave. However, this is really not the story but only the set up. The real story is about what happens after he is caught as the police and the FBI race against time to get him to reveal where she's buried.

Our sociopathic villain, known to us only as Harry (after his idol Harry Houdini) is well prepared for the psychological cat and mouse game that follows as he had planned what he would do if he were caught. The result is an effective (though often superficial) contest of psychological one upsmanship between Harry (Adrien Brody) and our heroine police detective, Madeline (Maura Tierney).

The story has some noticeable plot flaws for a film that is attempting to be a serious crime drama. Certain elements of Harry's escape attempts are implausible. Much of the dialogue between the police officers and FBI agents was inane drivel that made them look like idiots. There are other problems later in the story involving the buried wife that are also troubling. These are not enough, however, to mar an otherwise well crafted plot.

I was most impressed by the photography, not just the look of the film, but the way the images presented themselves. Director Richard Shepard used the camera very creatively, using objects in foreground and background to dramatize certain images. There was an excellent shot of Madeline's reflection seen in extreme close-up in Harry's eye. The handheld chase scenes made you feel like you were running behind the action. This is a level of directing that is not normally seen on TV. The whole film had a very raw, real look. Things were dirty and disorganized, just like in real life rather than being carefully and symmetrically placed.

The acting ranged from fair to excellent. The cops and the husband were generally pretty mediocre with moments of nausea. Maura Tierney was good but didn't have the range to play Madeline effectively. Madeline's character required a combination of tormented, pathetic self abuser and case hardened cop. Tierney was outstanding at the tormented side, but came across as tentative and flaccid as the cop (which was the greater part of the role).

The best performance comes from Adrian Brody as Harry. He was wry and unsophisticated while being just close enough to the edge to keep you guessing if he was cunning or just a psychopath. He played the part with sarcastic disdain, as if the character thought he was smarter than he really was, which indeed was the case.

Terry Kinney's character, Madeline's cop husband Tim, didn't give him much to work with. He was a wimpy whining loser. Kinney did an adequate job at this portrayal.

I rated this movie 7/10. For those who enjoy a psychological crime thriller, it won't disappoint.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Incredible Adrian Brody performance
Review: This movie is worth watching if only for an incredible "evil guy" performance by Adrian Brody. He is oddly likeable, even if his character is chillingly bad. This is not a movie I would watch over and over again, but I really enjoyed it once.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An Amazing Psychotic Thriller - Awesome Movie
Review: This movie isn't your normal psychotic thriller type movie. This is a spectacular film starring The Pianist star Adrien Brody. I would highly recommend this film to anybody who appreciates a "Good Movie". With a low price and high quality, you can't go wrong!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Oh Please!
Review: This movie stunk. I'd rather be hooked up to oxygen than have to watch this again.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: five stars
Review: this movie was very suspenseful,thrilling, adrion brody was a great psycho,maura tierney played a very different role from what we are used to seeing her in. Oxygen was very well written and the story line was very entertaining.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: LET'S BE CURIOUS
Review: This one was very hard to find. Hidden behind six SIXTH SENSE and five DOUBLE JEOPARDY dvd's at my favorite video store. That's a peculiar pleasure, and not the least, for the movie lover to discover a little pearl amidst the hollywoodian dinosaurs. So surprise, surprise ! Firstly, The jacket announced a special widescreen copy ; Nada ! just a pan & scan version, the movie killer by excellence as any movie buff knows it. Then a look at iMDB told me that OXYGEN was a TV-movie, but, in the user section, a reviewer was certifying that OXYGEN had been shown in two theaters ! What a salad ! (french expression).

Let's go back to Richard Shepard's movie which star Maura Tierney and Adrien Brody. Miss Tierney plays the character of a woman detective of the NYPD, married to her chief, and with a slight booze problem. On the other hand, Adrien Brody is a charming young man whose principal activity is to bury alive the women of wealthy men in order to obtain some money while the poor victims are suffocating. Well, that's a story !

And that's not the end of it ! Just imagine that Adrien Brody is also a fan of Harry Houdini, the famous magician of the beginning of the XXth century and likes to play with the nerves of the cops by escaping from the most unusual places. You also are going to appreciate the manner Richard Shepard,with subtlety, plays with one of the most common of cinematographic themes : vampires.

In short, OXYGEN is a very good surprise with excellent actors, it's a nervous little thriller with enough beef to please the most blasés movie lovers.

A commentary and the usual trailers and filmographies. Good sound but average images.

A DVD dedicated to my mother-in-law.


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