The first 1/4 or so hit me as laborious, I found one character just simply annoying, but I stuck with it to the end and I'm glad I did. Prior reviewer's comparison to Moon seem spot-on, except this is a much smaller film. And I might add to that, conceptually similar to Moon, and then there's almost a bit of the video game Portal mixed into the backstory. As I got into it, it started to remind me a little Mamet-ish style, like Oleanna maybe, claustrophobic and in-your-face drama where the surroundings reveal themselves very slowly and with quite a bit of tension (ie, I found myself constantly picturing the stories they're *not* telling you about how they got there). It's films like this and Moon, really with a cast of just 3, that remind me how large casts dilute, there's an intensity a good small cast brings. For anyone into a small film that's a challenging drama and a little time-dystopian sci- fi, I'd definitely recommend.

Science fiction has always been there to "test us out" with elements of the familiar in scenarios that are entirely unfamiliar. That's probably a healthy thing, though one is perhaps entitled to question whether it is reasonable to "see how human beings behave" in a largely fantastic (in this case dystopian) scenario to which are added so many specific and contrived conditions (problems) that the already-inconceivable-looking scenario is made less possible by far. In essence, this is what Christian Cantamessa's "Air" does, and in so doing it in some sense resembles, for example, the films of the "Cube" series (though those were glossy and high-tech in their cruelty, while here all is shabby and grey). Still, in "Air" too, both cast (that's basically three players, and mainly just a pretty-Daryl-ish Norman Reedus plus the at-first-sight somewhat strange bedfellow of Djimon Hounsou) and audience are made to jump through hoops a bit to accept what's going on. There's also more than a hint of "10 Cloverfield Lane" in here, as well as the recent (i.e. later-than-2015) "Passengers".So does "Air" have enough to offer either a general audience, or else that more specific subset of people who are already die-hard sci-fi fans? I will elect to answer that question from the point of view of somebody included in the latter category and say "yes". Ultimately, this is an imaginative and intriguing film in which our route to the shocking dystopia it portrays is just about fleshed out enough to engender a shudder and a measure of satisfaction among we "experts" in things that could go wrong with the Earth. It also does well enough at portraying the simultaneously dull yet creepy mini-world that has remained habitable in the midst of catastrophic destruction. Occasionally that confined world has a measure of cosiness, more often it seems claustrophobic, but the imagination takes flight and the empathy turns on when one is made to realise that that is now "all there is". The storyline reminds us repeatedly that this was a last-minute effort cobbled together to try and save something as opposed to nothing, and this is rather a first in movies of this ilk, and somewhat poignant it is too, at least at times.Indeed, so relatively slapdash and Heath Robinson is much of this that our two key characters have few options to work with, yet do keep working hard to expand that list. And given the very specific way they do their jobs (coming out of stasis only periodically for very strictly-limited periods of time), it is true to say that at most moments in the film we viewers have little or no idea of what will follow. Maybe that throws up expectations that can't be met on occasion, but it must also be seen as something reasonably fresh and unique in a film.Ultimately, people are people, and even the scale of our heroes' responsibility (which we are reminded of repeatedly) and the measure of the dystopian challenge cannot suffice to allow our two maintenance men to go on robot-like, doing the job without emotion. Rather, emotion tends to take over, as well it actually might under such extreme circumstances , so fair enough. The very final segment goes with that, but is far less successful, and indeed looks surplus to requirements in what is otherwise a pretty well-imagined and taut piece of film-making supplying a truly awful end of the world on a shoestring, but actually rather well; and offering us a thought-provoking and unpredictable storyline on the back of two seemingly randomly-selected actors who actually gel effectively enough.

Can I say first off, that my wife came into the room when I was about 30 minutes into this and I managed to convince her for 10 minutes that it was the new episode of the Walking Dead - oh how we laughed when she discovered my joke.To save you all from watching this, I can sum the film up for you in a few sentences.The guy who plays Daryl out of off of The Walking Dead takes a break from the series for about 15 minutes, and goes over the road to another studio where someone has set up as a 'delapidated basement plant room' set. Also, the main guy out of off of Amistad and whatever else he's been in does the same.There, they play two scruffy air conditioning engineers who wake up six months out of cryogenic submersion (the Amistad guy managed to get through this without growing any facial hair whatsoever) and the two bicker and argue for 10 minutes before one locks the other out of the facility. Whislt outside, we get to see an alleged post apocalyptic city on the horizon (this 20 second scene was what most of the films budget went into so bear with me and make the most of that mental image if you would) The guy out of off of Amistad then tries to get back inside only to be shot in the chest by Daryl out of off of The Walking Dead but makes a frankly completely implauasble recovery and manages to get rid of poor Daryl.The end.If you want to watch this utter pile of pigs number twos, please go ahead and tell me all the action, necessary dialogue, special effects, plot holes and plot developments I may have missed, but I watched it all the way through without interruption, and wrote this immediately after. That's the film folks. It's been done before with almost identical formats, with other cheapo TV actors who may have also thought it would be a good idea not to bother getting a cut and blowdry for a movie this big as The Walking Dead image is more important.I strongly recommend to anyone reading this who hasn't seen the film but doesn't believe me to go ahead and take the plunge. I guarantee you'll be wanting those 90 minutes of your life back. I know I do.3 out of 10,and THATS being generous. Thanks for calling.

Air is a good example of a minimalistic film which takes the maximum advantage of its austere locations, minuscule cast and a premise which is easy to assimilate, but includes ingenious surprises. Air was made with very little money, but it doesn't seem so; its limitations are an integral part of the story, and we never feel the fact that director Christian Cantamessa was "saving cash", but making a movie under the exact conditions to fulfill its potential and guarantee a solid emotional nucleus which invites us to wonder what we would do under similar circumstances. The affair of underground bases as a refuge of nuclear war (or similar catastrophes) is a well known formula of science fiction and conspiracy literature. This allows co- screenwriters Cantamessa and Chris Pasetto to drive the story on a fluid and natural way, without constantly stopping to explain the situation or overwhelm us with logistic details about the function of the main characters. And when some clarity is needed, Cantamessa and Pasetto subtly integrate it with efficient dialogs which transmit the necessary information without complicating the story. Norman Reedus and Djimon Hounsou bring competent performances, and they have a good chemistry with each other, something which makes the loyalty and differences between their characters credible. On the negative side, the addition of a romantic sub-plot feels a bit unnecessary; at least, that allowed the presence in the cast of Sandrine Holt, a talented but underrated actress who always bring credibility and intensity to the supporting roles she usually plays (like in the TV series 24 and The Returned). Even though I wouldn't consider it a great film, I liked Air pretty much, and I recommend it to those who like serious science fiction with the emphasis on ideas and performances, instead of special effects.