12th Man follows a closed door murder mystery involving 12 people transpiring over the course of 24 hours. And if this one liner does not evoke any sense of curiosity then little things will! This is a classic murder mystery which is setup behind closed doors. I remember it was in school that we were given a task of building a perfect setup for a murder mystery. And given my limited knowledge of cinema even back then, I was applauded for my efforts. It is simple – you need to have multiple characters stranded in a remote location with a bit of the weather playing spoilsport until a person is bumped off.

And this is exactly what transpires. But therein lies the genius of Jeethu Joseph. If you are familiar with his filmography then there is considerable amount of buildup at the very beginning. And here, there are as many as 12 characters and so while you as an audience try to focus on their name(considering that this is a murder mystery) and their traits, the story begins to unfold. Once you are settled in, a chain of events unfold which make the film exciting and entertaining to watch leading up to the murder where everyone is a suspect.

From there on, the entire drama unfolds in a single room and it is here at the drama is cerebral and manages to hold your attention which was not easy at all. Closed door investigations are difficult to execute given their conversational nature. But here, everyone is a suspect wherein the drama is layered and each layer when peeled off reveals a totally different picture. So you are left guessing on who the murderer is and it is next to impossible to nail this one as everyone had a motive. And the final reveal is a good one too leading up to a satisfying final few minutes. The screenplay is water tight and manages to hold your attention.