Extraordinary response for Jallikattu after its world premier at Toronto International Film Festival
The much-awaited world premier of Lijo Jose Pellissery’s ‘Jallikattu’ is was held today at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Lijo, cinematographer Girish Gangadharan, writer S Hareesh, producer Thomas Panicker and actors Antony Varghese, Santhy Balachandran and Chemban Vinod Jose attended the premier.
There was already a positive talk about ‘Jallikattu’ in the TIFF circles but the response after the show has been beyond expectations. Those who got to watch the movie have been raving about it online. Some have even called it the Indian equivalent of Steven Spielberg’s ‘Jaws’. Here are some of the tweets,
JALLIKATTU is Act 3 of “Mother” energy for 2 hours. Mass hysteria and utter chaos in a small village, choreographed with gorgeous rigor. It reaches Fury Road levels of mania and I can’t imagine how many injuries there must have been on set. #TIFF19
JALLIKATTU: The men of an Indian village collectively lose their shit when a buffalo escapes. Starts farcical comedy, ends as a vision of hell. Moves at lightning pace in both; it’s as if we’re in fast-forward mode. Bold and 5000% committed; I was into it. Seek it out! #TIFF19
JALLIKATTU is one of the more intense TIFF experiences I’ve ever had. The sound design and cinematography are often astounding, and every scene involving the bull is always on the cusp of being traumatic. #TIFF19
“Jallikattu” is a very entertaining comic action movie about a village in India that descends into chaos after a buffalo begins to run rampant. The spectacle is amazing and the action is visceral, even if the story gets a bit repetitive after a while.
#Jallikattu is an extremely frenetic “chase the Buffalo” film that is a bit hard to follow at times, but the absolute insanity of the final few minutes kind of makes up for its shortcomings. #TIFF19 #VanguardLives
This movies is nuts. A water buffalo gets lose and tears a town apart physically and emotionally. Most immersive and powerful sound mix I’ve heard in awhile; felt like I was in the jungle chasing the buffalo. Don’t know how lots of people aren’t dead right now. #TIFF19
‘Jallikattu’ is actually based on S Hareesh’s short story ‘Maoist’. The original story discusses about the maoist situation and a person’s right to freedom, from the perspective of two buffaloes. Taking the crux out of the short story, Hareesh along with R Jayakumar have developed a screenplay that explores the beastly side of man. It is set in a remote village in Kerala where a buffalo escapes and causes a frenzy of ecstatic violence.
