-Written by Kyle Bain.
Cooper (Daniel Dorr) has recently been diagnosed with OCD, and his emotional response to his diagnosis is anything but ideal. He finds himself struggling through his day to day–and he’s forced to lean on the people around him in order to make it through. Pure O sees Cooper struggling through therapy as well as his day job as a rehab counselor, but coming to understand that his clients may be just as beneficial to him as he is to them.
Both Dorr and Cooper are impressively charismatic–and together they drive Pure O. In a film that plays out slowly and doesn’t do much to excite viewers, Pure O needs something for viewers to latch onto, to truly appreciate throughout the course of the film–and that thing is the Cooper/Dorr combination. Cooper is well written, and it’s clear the time and effort that Writer-Director Dillon Tucker put into the development of this character. Beneath the charisma that he possesses exists something even more powerful: trauma. There’s a beautiful balance between the two, seeing them effectively play a game of tennis throughout Pure O. Then there’s Dorr, who, beyond the character, clearly possesses a level of intensity and passion that fills the canvas that is Pure O. It often feels like viewers are seeing past the character, seeing the actor for who and what he really is–and that’s invigorating and exciting.
In some ways Dorr is a character in the film–even beyond what he brings to life in Cooper. Again, it seems that Dorr’s personality comes through in the character, and he brings a vigor and intensity to the table that helps to elevate Pure O in a way that wouldn’t have been possible without him.
While Cooper is so wonderfully developed, the dialogue is hit or miss and doesn’t appear to have been given the same level of attention as the aforementioned character. There are times when it plays out naturally and really makes sense–then there are times in which the dialogue feels forced and inorganic. During the latter I was forced from the narrative–and my ability to accept the things taking place in Pure O was hindered. What typically takes place is something incredibly simple–something that can resonate with viewers because Tucker didn’t overthink it–but some moments become too scientific, too analytical, and it goes beyond the scope and vocabulary of the average person. Pure O loses something in these moments, and I sometimes struggled to crawl back into the narrative as a result.
Additionally, there is a bit too much going on in Pure O, and it becomes crowded. There’s one, primary storyline–and it’s easy to follow, but as the film progresses others’ stories demand focus as well, and with nearly a half dozen different stories playing out at once, it becomes difficult to juggle everything. It would be unfair to say that Pure O ever lost me, but there were certainly times when my focus was compromised and the film lacked the same vigor that it did when it was just Cooper and his singular story.
All in all, even through the frumpiness of the dialogue and the many moving parts, Pure O is an enjoyable ride. The film captures the reality of OCD, and in an original way–and Dorr does an impeccable job of bringing Cooper to life (and seemingly to allow Cooper to exist within the film as well). I enjoyed the film, and while it can get to be quite gut wrenching, it also helps ease some of the troubles of daily life.
Written & Directed by Dillon Tucker.
Starring Daniel Dorr, Hope Lauren, Landry Bender, Jeffrey A. Baker, Breon Gorman, Timothy Landfield, Candice Renee, etc.
7/10 = WATCH IT FOR FREE
