The sudden rise in the popularity of Malayalam cinema in the past few years is commendable. They have been redefining the idea of mainstream movies. Adding another movie to this list is Iratta (Twin). The storyline will bowl the audience over. It is original and remarkable. Debutant director Rohit M G Krishnan’s Iratta skilfully unravels a complicated and nuanced story of twin brothers. Joju George is praise-worthy in his double role. The characters are completely different from one another, and the actor has managed to nail them to perfection.
The movie will remind you of Agatha Christie’s locked room mysteries like And Then There Were None and Murder on the Orient Express. In Iratta, a policeman is gunned down inside the police station. The prime suspects are three policemen. Since the crime happened inside the police station, the authorities are under extreme pressure to find out the murderer.
Joju George plays Vinod and Pramod. The former has a bad reputation as a cop, whereas the latter is known for his professionalism. One thing that’s common between them is that they are both lonely. One is a recovering alcoholic, and the other is still brazen in his ways. They are both loveless and live alone.
Vinod is shot dead. He is lying in a pool of blood. Pramod arrives at the crime scene and is heartbroken by the death of his brother. We see their childhood in flashbacks, which wasn’t happy. They are victims of a loveless father and were separated in childhood because of their father’s selfishness and debauchery.
The movie then proceeds to find out the murderer and the intent behind killing the infamous policeman. The character growth is incredible. Vinod goes from a barbaric alcoholic to a stable man who falls in love with a divorced woman. Pramod quits his alcohol addiction and is on the path to recovery. He has a wife and daughter who no longer live with him.
The three policemen who are suspects in this murder have a personal vendetta against Vinod, and coincidentally they were the ones first to reach the crime scene. All three of them have secrets to hide, and they have one thing in common. They hated Vinod. It’s clear from the beginning that none of them would have done this crime.
Vinod’s character arc is praise-worthy. He restarts his life after being hopeless for so long. The woman he falls in love with is a little hesitant in the beginning, but soon she sees how he is transforming into a better man for her. The director has done an excellent job of giving both characters distinct personalities and temperaments.
Their suffering is highlighted, and that’s why this movie isn’t just a fast-paced thriller. It smoothly modifies into an emotional family drama without altering the theme of the movie. The movie subtly points out the flaws in human beings without pointing fingers at their character.
Malini, the woman Vinod falls in love with, stands out the most. She is a victim of domestic abuse and has nowhere to turn to after leaving her husband. Vinod offers her that she can stay with him, and the two of them live under the same roof. They aren’t married yet. Malini’s silence, resilience, and subtlety say a lot about the movie’s writing. She barely says a few words in the movie yet manages to deliver the strongest performance out of the lot.
On the other hand, Pramod’s wife leaves him because of his alcoholism. He doesn’t really care about his wife, even after she gives birth to his daughter. She leaves him, and he doesn’t move an inch to convince her to stay back. However, he soon realizes his mistake and tries to get his life together.
Every actor in the film has done an incredible job. Iratta stands apart in the way it reveals who the killer is. It shows the characters’ journey through their childhood and how they reached this point in life. Vinod’s wrongdoings are what got to him in the end. The women aren’t just housewives here. They play strong roles and are inspiring.
This movie will draw you in and keep you hooked until the climax. You will feel for the characters’ misery and want good things to happen to them. The climax was a bit disappointing, but that’s one thing that can be overlooked because locked room mysteries aren’t easy to crack on the first attempt. The clever plot and subplots are absolutely worth watching.
Read More: 25 Greatest Malayalam Movies of All Time
Iratta (2023) Movie Links – IMDb
Iratta (2023) Movie Cast – Joji George, Anjali, Manoj K.U
Where to watch Iratta
