‘Mirage’ Movie Review: Jeethu Joseph’s Thriller, Starring Asif Ali and Aparna Balamurali, Keeps Tripping Over Its Convoluted Twists (LatestLY Exclusive)

Mirage Movie Review: Between Drishyam and Drishyam 2, director Jeethu Joseph - not counting the Drishyam remakes he himself directed - gave us Life of Josutty, Oozham, Aadhi, Mr & Ms Rowdy, The Body, and Thambi. I list these films not to pad this Mirage review but to remind Mohanlal fans that most of them, Aadhi aside, were middling efforts. Yet, Drishyam 2 - despite its straight-to-OTT release - turned out to be a stunner. ‘Drishyam 3’: After Dadasaheb Phalke Award Announcement, Mohanlal Kickstarts Filming Next Chapter of Iconic Thriller Franchise.

So here’s the moral of that little preamble: don’t let Mirage dampen your excitement for Drishyam 3 (which, as of writing, has already begun shooting). Jeethu Joseph surprised us once with the sequel, and one hopes he has another ace up his sleeve for the threequel. Now, with that reassurance out of the way, let me tell you why Mirage left me cold.

'Mirage' Movie Review - The Plot

Abhirami (Aparna Balamurali), an employee at a private financial firm in Chennai, files a missing person’s report for her fiancé Kiran (Hakim Shahjahan), who is also her colleague. To her shock, the police inform her that he died in a recent train accident - on a train heading somewhere he was never meant to go.

Watch the Trailer of 'Mirage':

In the aftermath, Abhirami finds herself hounded about a mysterious hard disk Kiran was supposedly carrying. Determined to uncover the truth, she teams up with her best friend Rithika (Hannah Reji Koshy) and Aswin (Asif Ali), a determined online journalist investigating her company’s shady dealings. Together, they dig deeper while navigating the threats posed by Rajkumar (Saravanan), the company’s devious owner, and SP Aarumugam IPS (Sampath Raj), whose intentions remain inscrutable.

'Mirage' Movie Review - Exciting Idea in Paper, Jaw-Slacking on Screen

Mirage marks Jeethu Joseph’s first collaboration with Asif Ali after the tense and entertaining Kooman (2022), which also featured Hannah Reji Koshy. Ali and Aparna Balamurali reunite after headlining the superb Kishkindakaandam. With Jeethu on a good run post-Drishyam 2 - delivering the taut Kooman, the decent courtroom drama Neru, and the hilarious Nunakkuzhi - expectations were understandably high.

I am sure when the cast heard the script the first time, Mirage must have sounded like a relentlessly thrilling investigative drama full of gasp-worthy twists. And to be fair, the film delivers twists - plenty of them. The problem? Many feel less like clever rug-pulls and more like cheap narrative cheats. Mirage often seems convinced that any shock will do, logic be damned.

Jeethu Joseph is frequently criticised for being a workmanlike director whose screenplays do the heavy lifting. But here, the writing itself is the problem - stretching credibility beyond breaking point - and the direction does little to disguise it.

'Mirage' Movie Review - Aao 'Twist' Karein!

To be fair, the setup is solid. A fiancé’s death unravelling a trail of corruption, a missing MacGuffin, mysterious strangers entering Abhirami’s life - all the right ingredients for a pulpy, fast-paced thriller. And for a while, Mirage is exactly that: an engaging mystery as Abhirami and Aswin chase answers.

Then comes the first jaw-dropping reveal about a major character - and my jaw didn’t drop in admiration but disbelief. Shocking twists work only when they make sense in hindsight. Here, the reveal feels completely disconnected from how the character had behaved until that point. And just when you think it’s done, the film piles on even more twists, straining logic to breaking point. At one point, I half-expected Georgekutty to show up just to add to the chaos.

It all becomes exhausting. A Karikku skit comes to mind, where a character shouts in exasperation, “edey ithu engottu okey aanu pokunathu?” That’s exactly how Mirage makes you feel - what started as a promising investigative thriller devolves into a chaotic chase for one MacGuffin after another, before swerving into a revenge drama that feels parachuted in from another movie. ‘KishKindha Kaandam’ Movie Review: Asif Ali and Vijayaraghavan’s Brilliant Performances and a Layered Mystery Make for a Spectacular Combo!

Even moments that are meant to be big reveals, like the spy twist at the interval, land with a thud. By the second half, the script has twisted itself into such knots that when one major character is shown to have no secrets, I sat waiting for yet another twist - and of course, it comes, and it’s as absurd as I feared. It’s the cinematic equivalent of Spectre’s Blofeld suddenly revealing he was the architect of all of James Bond’s pain - a moment that leaves you thinking, “Sure, why not?”

The cast - including Asif Ali, Aparna Balamurali, Hakim Shajahan, Hannah Reji Koshy, Deepak Parambol, and Sampath Raj - do their jobs earnestly, but the writing gives them little room to breathe. Aparna and Hannah, in particular, seem boxed in by characters whose motivations change with every twist.

Visually, Mirage is also underwhelming. Malayalam cinema has often punched above its weight with striking imagery on limited budgets, but here, awkward AI-generated shots and unconvincing green screens (especially in the train accident sequence) pull you out of the experience. Some scenes even border on unintentionally hilarious - like the forest fight sequence that oddly reminded me of the chaotic climax of Akkare Akkare Akkare, with characters shooting at random just for effect.

'Mirage' Movie Review - Final Thoughts

Mirage is not without its moments - the core mystery is intriguing enough to keep you watching - but its overreliance on implausible twists, patchy writing, and uneven execution sink what could have been a sharp thriller. It’s a thriller that tries to stay one step ahead of its audience but ends up tripping over its own ambition. Here’s hoping Jeethu Joseph brings back the tightness and emotional resonance we know he’s capable of when he returns with Drishyam 3. He must!

(The opinions expressed in the above article are of the author and do not reflect the stand or position of LatestLY.)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 24, 2025 11:40 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).