I read the other reviews... a lot of hate here so I started with a low expectations.
Its odd, as I would never have watched this if I'd known that the film was mostly one person on screen or the duration of the film but actually, it held me. Kingsley's performance is strong and captivating. Unlike other reviewers, I get that his Hypoxia is what has rendered him vulnerable. The high emotion, the paranoia and the fumbling motor skills are classic outcomes of oxygen starvation.
The set design looks really great, and it creates an environment that has a feel of claustrophobia and isolation. Almost submarine like. I don't know how accurate the design is to what would have been around at the time but the little digs about the cutting edge tech are on point. Look at the sedans of the 50's and you'll have a great benchmark for what would have been regarded as cutting edge at the time!
At times I would have liked it if we could have seen the people we could hear but I suspect this would have challenged the low budget. But this was more than made up for with the end scene which is amazing. A single shot to unravel the plot twist. Its great and it feels so different to the rest to the film it kind of jolts you back to earth (no pun intended).
So, the film has its limitations but I enjoyed it. The story was good, the performance from Kingsley strong and the technical aspects of the film gave it a polished look. I really enjoyed the music and will probably end up watching it again to see if I can find the clues that the trivia suggest I have probably missed!
Its odd, as I would never have watched this if I'd known that the film was mostly one person on screen or the duration of the film but actually, it held me. Kingsley's performance is strong and captivating. Unlike other reviewers, I get that his Hypoxia is what has rendered him vulnerable. The high emotion, the paranoia and the fumbling motor skills are classic outcomes of oxygen starvation.
The set design looks really great, and it creates an environment that has a feel of claustrophobia and isolation. Almost submarine like. I don't know how accurate the design is to what would have been around at the time but the little digs about the cutting edge tech are on point. Look at the sedans of the 50's and you'll have a great benchmark for what would have been regarded as cutting edge at the time!
At times I would have liked it if we could have seen the people we could hear but I suspect this would have challenged the low budget. But this was more than made up for with the end scene which is amazing. A single shot to unravel the plot twist. Its great and it feels so different to the rest to the film it kind of jolts you back to earth (no pun intended).
So, the film has its limitations but I enjoyed it. The story was good, the performance from Kingsley strong and the technical aspects of the film gave it a polished look. I really enjoyed the music and will probably end up watching it again to see if I can find the clues that the trivia suggest I have probably missed!