Jailer (2023)

Jailer is a Malayalam period drama set in the 1950s. Dhyan Sreenivasan plays a jail officer who believes that criminals can be reformed with trust rather than brutality, and who gets permission to try an unusual experiment with a small group of prisoners outside the normal prison system. The plan puts him at odds with colleagues and superiors, and the prisoners themselves carry pasts that do not let go easily. Manoj K. Jayan heads the supporting cast. The film gained unexpected publicity because it shared its title with Rajinikanth's Tamil blockbuster Jailer, released the same month, and its makers publicly fought to keep the name. Its period setting and its interest in rehabilitation set it apart from typical prison films.