arungeorge13

I so wanted to like this as the makers really leaned into the aesthetics of the '80s -- an era that's well-known for its slasher boom. There are callbacks to classics of the time, like Halloween and When A Stranger Calls, for instance. I felt the initial plot setup held potential, with threads getting tied up slowly and steadily, but what disappointed me big time was the final reveal. Not only is the killer's motivation so vague and bland, but it also makes the concluding act a tiresome affair.

The larger picture does add up, though it's not all that convincing. Also, for a slasher thriller, the kill count is comparatively less. There's a good little twist packaged in the midst of it all, but that's bound to get buried under the shallowness of what follows immediately after. Two stars for the '80s vibes and some of the framing choices. The performances are okayish. The 2025 Halloween movie season is officially underway!

Mirage is just a parippuvada thriller masquerading as Jeethu Joseph brilliance but in the most TV serial-like way. The dialogues are some of the worst I've heard in a mainstream film in recent times. Being marketed as a thriller, there is an excessive reliance on twisting the narrative, though without proper foreshadowing. It all boils down to whether the twists work for the (individual) moments, and not for the film as a whole. That kind of writing from a thriller veteran like Jeethu Joseph is a big downer. The cinematography (Satheesh Kurup), editing (Vinayakh), and music (Vishnu Shyam) are all subpar efforts.

Actually, the makers themselves spoiled one of the "final twists" in their promotional interviews by saying Asif Ali took on a role that many mainstream male actors rejected. There were plenty of unintentionally funny moments, like with the hitman who keeps popping up with a silenced pistol every 15 minutes (..onnu vekkada vedi ennu parayaan thonni). Deepak Parambol saying "I like you.. you have a great sense of humour" to a stranger, the moment they pick up a video call was too funny. Hakkim Shajahan has been picking terrible roles of late, and here's one more to that list. Let's forget Mirage exists, and quickly move on to Drishyam 3 (..please take time and write it well, Jeethu sir!).

Well, there's the main plot and then there are themes that run beneath it. Are the proceedings harsh-reality-induced, dehydration-induced, drug-induced, or trauma-induced? Maybe, all of it. But this seaside smoothie blend isn't as good as its individual flavours. Nic Cage gives it EVERYTHING -- including drinking spilled beer, stuffing a rat in his pocket, and whatnot -- and yet, the conclusive arc for his character doesn't offer much. I wish it had stuck to a single theme (of hostile locals and the protagonist trying to fit BACK into the community) instead of so many. The imagery looks like an absolute dream, especially in the first 30 minutes, and DP Radek Ladczuk captures the locales in orange sun-soaked glory.

The parallels drawn with the bum (and his backstory) don't hit as hard because we don't get to know the character beyond what we're told in a few lines. But if there's a big win among the messy individual components, it's Nic Cage's choices in picking roles. Even as a flawed character, he genuinely makes you feel the lack of support, the food and water deficiency, and most importantly, the anguish of not being able to achieve what he sets out to do. That part of the writing is truly elevated by his performance. The film.. eh, not so much, mate.

P. S. RIP Julian McMahon.