DRISHYAM 3 – MOVIE REVIEW

Drishyam 3 is a crime thriller written and directed by Jeethu Joseph. Produced by Antony Perumbavoor for Aashirvad Cinemas, it serves as the sequel to Drishyam 2 (2021) and the third installment in the iconic Drishyam franchise.

At the cost of sounding repetitive, sequels are always a difficult task — especially when the predecessors have achieved phenomenal success and cult status because of their sheer ingeniousness. Drishyam 3 needs no elaborate introduction. The familiar surroundings and the intense backdrop of a haunting case lingering over every frame manage to keep the suspense alive.

One of the strongest reasons behind the success of the first film was its extraordinary ability to make the audience feel like a part of Georgekutty’s family. Their innocence became the emotional backbone of the narrative. The audience did not merely watch them — they lived with them, rooted for them, searched for ways to help them, and felt emotionally shattered whenever they were cornered. The second part too managed to retain much of that emotional intimacy.

The biggest drawback of Drishyam 3 is that Jeethu Joseph unintentionally distances the audience from the family. This time, instead of sitting with the family, we merely watch them from our theatre seats. We still root for the characters, but the emotional participation that once defined the franchise feels diluted.

The first half is built impressively well. The tension remains palpable throughout, and the re-emergence of familiar characters and connections gives strong indications of what the narrative is building towards. It is in the second half that the film begins to falter. The family emotions still work, the occasion surrounding them works, and even the mounting tension largely holds up. But the convoluted and overtly cinematic pre-climax and climax become major letdowns.Suddenly, the film begins to feel different from the grounded emotional thriller that the franchise once was. There are villains now — and they are disappointingly cliché. Georgekutty, who once felt like an ordinary man trapped by extraordinary circumstances, is transformed into a conventional hero figure. By the end, a character says “Let it be.” And perhaps that is exactly how one feels — let Georgekutty be.

Mohanlal is indispensable. The phenomenal actor that he is, he delivers yet another subtle and commanding performance, proving once again why he remains one of the undisputed masters of Indian cinema. Even within a screenplay that occasionally slips into clichés, he elevates the material effortlessly. The rest of the cast, however, appear more like participants in a successful franchise than fully lived-in characters. Meena, Esther Anil, and Ansiba Hassan perform their parts adequately, while Siddique and Murali Gopy are decent.

Cinematography by Satheesh Kurup is effective, while Anil Johnson delivers a neat background score. The dialogues work well, editing by V. S. Vinayak is fine, and Jeethu Joseph’s direction remains technically standard.

In the end, DRISHYAM 3 feels heavily compromised by the loss of Georgekutty’s innocence. From once being part of his family, the audience has now merely been reduced to being his fans.

DRISHYAM 3 – DISAPPOINTING!!

2.75/5

B.U. Shreesha