Mirage Movie Review
Mirage: A Thrill That Quickly Fades
Jeethu Joseph's Mirage begins with promise but collapses under repetitive twists, contrived suspense, and lack of emotional depth.Jeethu Joseph's latest outing Mirage opens on a gripping note, with a train accident and puzzling circumstances that immediately spark intrigue. The story centers on Abhirami (Aparna Balamurali), whose life is turned upside down after the death of her colleague and lover Kiran (Hakkim Shah). Following his demise, she becomes the target of her employer, who seeks a mysterious hard disk linked to Kiran.
Set primarily in Coimbatore, the narrative follows Abhirami as she endures attacks from her boss's henchmen and puzzling encounters with Superintendent of Police Arumugham (Sampath). Adding to her turmoil, an inquisitive online journalist, Ashwin (Asif Ali), begins shadowing her. Reluctantly trusting him, Abhirami, Ashwin, and her supportive friend Ritika (Hannah Reji Koshi) band together to unravel Kiran's hidden past. Unfortunately, the barrage of twists-often contrived and repetitive-turns their investigation into a tedious exercise rather than a gripping mystery.
The emotional backbone of the film rests on Abhirami's inner turmoil, and Aparna Balamurali delivers a heartfelt performance as a woman grappling with fear and confusion. Asif Ali fits the role of a restrained ally, though the script eventually pushes him into melodrama. On paper, the film's characters are designed to surprise, but in execution, their sudden shifts feel forced rather than organic.
With the tagline "Fades as you get closer," the film aspires to keep viewers hooked with a series of revelations. However, instead of delivering shocks, each "twist" lands like a hollow statement. Jeethu Joseph, celebrated for Drishyam, here indulges in a screenplay overcrowded with surprises that lack credibility or emotional weight. Vishnu Shyam's background score is uninspired, and Satheesh Kurup's cinematography adds only a middling impact.
At 152 minutes, Mirage overstays its welcome. Its thrill factor is overstuffed with empty turns and contrived suspense, reducing what could have been a taut thriller into a lumbering, repetitive drama. What begins as an intriguing mystery ultimately fizzles out, living up to its own tagline by vanishing into irrelevance.
