O2 review: A well-written medical thriller that’s effectively translated onto the screen

O2, the latest offering from PRK Productions, is led by Ashika Ranganath. A medical thriller, it revolves around a young doctor’s battle against death and mortality.

On the outside, Dr Shraddha Nayak is busy trying to find validation for her trials on an intravenous drug that could possibly delay death and save lives.

At the same time, she is trying to come to terms with the idea of mortality and moving on in her mind.

Interesting script

What sets a production house like PRK Productions apart from the rest is the trust they have placed in backing new filmmakers and different thoughts.

O2 could possibly be one of their flagship films in terms of choosing something new, refreshing, and intriguing for the Kannada audiences, as there haven’t been any medical thrillers they have hit the screens in recent times.

The script by itself is intriguing and the performances shine.

The film begins on a highly dramatic note where the audience is introduced to Dr Shraddha Nayak, who conducts a dangerous human trial. From there, the story goes into flashback mode to make the audience understand what led Dr Shraddha to this point.

The film is well under two hours, which makes it a breezy watch.

Through the narrative, one learns about Dr Shraddha — she lost her parents in childhood, is a child prodigy in medicine, and puts her medical ambitions over everything else.

At the same time, one gets to meet the demons she is battling in her mind, which include the acceptance of mortality and also proximity issues with people.

The makers have neatly woven details in the film that ensure medical terms and procedures do not seem complicated to the audience.

At the same time, they have also brought in the dichotomy of belief in spirit sciences versus medical sciences. These aspects are engaging and elevate the narrative.

What seems to be a hitch is the cinematography, which is inconsistent in some portions. Similarly, the computer graphics take away the intensity and emotions from some of the major parts of the film.

But the music and sound design compensate for this. Well, that’s a reassuring factor.

ನಮ್ಮ ಒಂದು ವಿಭಿನ್ನ ಪ್ರಯತ್ನ ‘ಓ2’ ಇಂದಿನಿಂದ ನಿಮ್ಮ ನೆಚ್ಚಿನ ಚಿತ್ರಮಂದಿರಗಳಲ್ಲಿ..
ನಿಮ್ಮ ಪ್ರೀತಿ ಪಾತ್ರರೊಂದಿಗೆ ನೋಡಿ,‌ ಹರಸಿ

Get ready for an immersive cinematic journey! ‘O2’ is now playing in theaters.
Watch with your loved ones. Book your 🎟 https://t.co/XDJSkB4q63#O2 @PRK_Productions… pic.twitter.com/RI4lgLdgVx

— Ashwini Puneeth Rajkumar (@Ashwini_PRK) April 19, 2024

Also Read: Foreign schedule of Mohanlal’s ‘Empuraan’ ends

Good casting

When it comes to performances, the makers seem to have done a good job with the casting.

Ashika Ranganath has a challenging role and she has lapped it up well.

Siri Ravikumar shines in her limited screen time.

Newcomer Raghav Nayak has a good screen presence and is promising.

Praveen Tej, Gopal Krishna Deshpande, and Prakash Belawadi deliver earnest performances.

Puneeth BA makes for an interesting new find for comic roles.

Verdict

O2 is definitely something novel and different. The script is the hero for this film and one needs to watch this film in the cinema halls to encourage more such attempts. The new director duo of Prashanth Raj and Raghav Nayak show promise.

(Views expressed here are personal.)