The Malayalam movie "Mirage," directed by Jeethu Joseph and starring Aparna Balamurali and Asif Ali, has received mixed reviews. It is a crime thriller centered around Abhirami, who struggles to uncover the truth about her fiancé's death, leading to a web of deception involving money laundering, identity theft, and betrayal.
Positive Aspects:
- The film has an engaging thriller foundation with Jeethu Joseph's signature twists and turns.
- Aparna Balamurali's performance as Abhirami has been appreciated for its depth.
- Some viewers found the second half solid with impactful twists and praised the soundtrack by Vishnu Shyam.
- The film is described as female-centric and contains psychological thriller elements.
Criticisms:
- The first half is slow and the movie suffers from too many twists in the latter half, which diminish impact.
- Some reviews point out overuse of convenience and lack of subtlety, with excessive spoon-feeding through dialogue instead of visual storytelling.
- The "Jeethu Joseph twist" at the climax has been found underwhelming and not very surprising.
- The story is viewed as having a thin plot stretched with frequent and often dull twists.
- Some critics mentioned that it lacks the intrigue and excitement seen in Jeethu Joseph's previous works like "Drishyam" or "Memories."
Overall, "Mirage" delivers a decent thriller experience but may leave viewers feeling the story and twists were overdone without substantial payoff.
