Thadam

Magizh Thirumeni's 2019 Tamil thriller sets a murder investigation against an apparently insoluble obstacle. After a young man is killed the police arrest a suspect, and shortly afterwards another man turns up who is his exact double. Their fingerprints, records and histories differ, but every piece of evidence resting on appearance applies equally to both. The film follows the methods police use to work out which one is the killer, and shows how fragile the idea of legal proof is. Arun Vijay plays both parts and separates them through manner. The construction advances by withholding information from the audience in measured steps, and the result was considered one of the tightest Tamil procedurals of recent years. It was remade in Hindi. Who it's for: viewers who like puzzle-structured procedurals and Tamil thrillers. Who it's not for: anyone wanting a realistic forensic process; the film builds its plot on convenience.