Ever since the announcement of the movie 'OG' (Original Gangster), expectations among Pawan Kalyan's fans have been skyrocketing. Although this project was started almost two years ago before the elections, unlike the movie 'Hari Hara Veera Mallu', it is clearly visible on the screen that Pawan Kalyan has given his full attention to this story.
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His participation, stylish screen presence, new excitement... all these are reflected in his performance. The hesitation and inconsistency seen in the previous films are not present in this film. Director Sujeeth did not delay in taking the audience into the story.
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Right from the opening scene of the movie, he has built the cruel world of 'OG' with a controlled narrative, increasing the suspense for the hero's entry. Even though Pawan Kalyan is not on screen for almost 25 minutes, Sujeeth's buildup to make his introduction effective is amazing. The entire first half is reminiscent of Prashanth Neel's 'KGF' narrative style.
Especially the pre-interval episode, the hero-elevation sequences are very well done. However, a beheading scene feels a bit routine. The interval block with the rest of the elements feels like an explosion. Sujeeth's work in this part, Pawan Kalyan's screen presence keeps the audience glued to their seats.
In fact, the highlight of this film comes immediately after the interval - a gripping conversation between Pawan Kalyan and Abhimanyu Singh at the police station. This is the best part that takes the film's drama to the highest level. But, it is after this great high point that director Sujeeth's limitations are revealed. He falters in maintaining that pace and suspense. The flashback track that tells why the 'OG' left Mumbai feels like a stretch. The track that follows with Emraan Hashmi also ends on a routine note.
The second half runs through blocks of repetitive elevation that are completely ineffective. The narrative often becomes confusing with unnecessary characters and subplots. The film starts with a Yakuza track in 1940s Japan, ties it to Pawan Kalyan's training, and eventually returns to it. This thread feels unnecessary and doesn't really help the main story.
Sujeeth's attempt to connect the film to the cinematic universe, using Jackie Shroff's character from 'Saaho', feels forced, and doesn't really help the story. Almost every scene is designed for hero elevation. But, the elevations are too much without any meaningful buildup or narrative progression, so its impact quickly diminishes.
While Sujeeth succeeds in providing the elements that fans want, he falls short in weaving them into a drama with strong emotional depth. This is evidenced by the abundance of 'fan-pleasing' touches like Pawan Kalyan using the machine gun engraved with the title 'Johnny' or playing one of his old hit songs in the middle of an action sequence.
There is no doubt that fans will feast for these whistle-blowing scenes. Technically, the rousing music (BGM) provided by Thaman is the main strength of the film. He takes every elevation scene to another level with his background score. Other technical values like cinematography and production design are very stylish and high-end.
Verdict:
Overall, "OG" is a film made for Pawan Kalyan fans. Sujeeth has no shortage of whistle-worthy (whistle-blowing) moments packed for the fans. Although the film has some good high points, the weak plot and the unimpressive second half reduce the overall impact of the film. This is the film that shows Pawan Kalyan in his most stylish and energetic way after a long time. 'OG' is a 'stylish action fest' that fans can definitely enjoy.