Not to be confused with the Malaysian found-footage movie “Irul: Ghost Hotel” from earlier this year, Naseef Yusuf Izuddin employs a psychological crime thriller approach to separate the two films for this Malayalam-filmed entry. Filmed during the pandemic while adhering to COVID-19 regulations at the time, this engaging if still flawed new thriller is now available to stream worldwide on Netflix.
Hoping to take a trip together, Alex Parayil, (Soubin Shahir) a writer and businessman, and his girlfriend Archana Pillai (Darshana Rajendran) plan to take a weekend off where he promises her a surprise. Along the way, their car breaks down in the rain, and the couple attempt to take shelter at a nearby house where they find the owner Unni (Fahadh Faasil) willing to accommodate them while they wait out the storm. During the night, a series of incidents occur that begin to cause them to question if they're in the presence of the serial killer upon which Alex's latest book was based, leading to a cat-and-mouse series of confrontations trying to get out of the house alive.
Overall, “Irul” comes off rather promising. One of the best features here is the minimalist approach that takes proper advantage of the small-scale setup and format present. The early setup that shows off the frustration with technology and spawning the true intention of the weekend away is well-handled. Director Izuddin gives the first part a valid backstory to get Alex and Archana together and away from the city out into the countryside where it all takes place. This is mixed together rather nicely with the atmospheric touches along the way, from the sudden torrential rainfall to the abandoned house in the countryside. Then it starts to turn toward thrilling with the revelations involving the criminal case at the center of Alex's book and everything differs from what happened, the film picks up the tension and atmosphere considerably. This is due to the audience knowing how they're trapped at the location due to circumstance and the weather outside so the rapidly escalating situation becomes somewhat suspenseful as time goes on.
Likewise, the mystery and suspense present is kept up rather nicely once “Irul” moves into the main section of its storyline. Consisting of multiple situations where both Alex and Unni accuse each other of being the fabled serial killer and presenting their own evidence to the cause, the back-and-forth nature of the revelations that come about drive up the stakes for everyone's survival. Not only does this section offer up a series of encounters based upon clues found around the house, but the mind-games that are being played by Alex and Unni further the distrust and suspense featured here. The final revelation, not only including the full disclosure of everything happening at the house but the dark outcome of what happened to the group, ties this together rather nicely.
However, “Irul” does come with a large, overarching problem. This one is so concerned with trying to bring its central mystery to the forefront that to do so it's done in a convoluted, sloppy manner. Trying to buy the series of lies and mistrust being utilized by Alex and Unni ends up requiring the suspension of far more disbelief than should be necessary here. This is because each one recounts tales that enable ludicrous outbursts or unnatural actions from the other to work if what they say is true. That leads the film into preposterous realms quite easily, especially once the final twist is revealed, which again brings the movie back to the borders of unrealistic in order to carry out the shock of the reveal to its fullest. Carrying out the entire ordeal with just three people is somewhat the problem, requiring another individual or two to bounce things off of or point out the illogical nature of the actions better so it's not as focused on trying to push those actions past the viewer. Still, this lone drawback does have a somewhat detrimental impact on this one as a whole.
Featuring a lot of quality suspense but doing so by a lot of damaging tactics, “Irul” serves as a watchable and at times engaging thriller that will veer into frustrating frequently for some viewers. Those who are less concerned with such matters or simply appreciate slick, well-made thrillers will have a lot to like while more discerning viewers turned off by the flaws present should heed some caution.
