Oxygen was launched in 2015 but the producer took two years to release it. Given the time taken, it is visible that all the characters have been carefully etched. All the supporting actors are familiar, big names. The film is about a military officer and his colleagues’ mission to unravel the kingpin behind the sale and use of drug-induced cigarettes.
The film is set in a village and Gopichand plays an NRI Krishna Prasad who woos Sruthi (Rashi Khanna) and her family and just when the wedding date is drawing close, Sruthi’s uncles are killed. The film moves slowly in a routine manner but the unexpected twist at the interval jolts you into believing something more interesting is due in the second half.
- Cast: Gopichand, Rashi Khanna
- Direction: Jothi Krishna
- Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja
- Plot: Hero nails man behind a dreadful chemical formula
What lets the story down is its predictability. You know where the film is heading once Gopichand’s identity is revealed and there is a pause in his love story. Action sequences have been shot very well, some songs that come in between test our patience. It is technically Anu Emmanuel’s first film and not even her fresh looks can hold your interest; she has a long way to go in terms of acting. Rashi Khanna is a tad better..
Gopichand does a good job but he sounds awkward reeling of dialogues about having drunk water from 120 water bodies in the country when his rival says… nenu Godavari neellu taginodinira . This is a total commercial film that lacks logic, but has a social message that gets lost in the senseless drama of unravelling the person behind a crime and a personal loss.
Thankfully the heroine is shown to be skilled in computer handling and helps the climax move forward. Everything is accepted but wanting the audience to believe that Gopichand, after ridden with bullets and falling into fire walks like he has a twin brother is a wee bit funny. Is the film tolerable? Yes, if you compare this one to Gopichand’s past three outings.
