Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
We all fight battles that nobody else considers to be of much interest, that we show a face to the world in which some will only remark upon with clarity and foresight, normally the people just pass by, it is to be expected that their lives will always matter more to them than your own, it is not kind but it is natural.
It is only when we fight back that people tend to take notice, their own opinions become further entrenched and we find ourselves often without allies or friends, someone to whom will have our back and take the hit for us; normally when trouble does come knocking, it is too the perfect stranger that we owe thanks and quite often our lives too.
Adapted from the critically acclaimed and best selling novel Out In The Open by Jesús Carrasco, the illustrator Javi Rey takes the fabric of the storyline and gives it the extra dimension and depth that comes naturally when displayed in graphic novel form. It is a form that goes in hand well with the original written concept and one that thankfully does not overpower it.
Too often, such a reworking or addition to the artist’s original idea can leave a regretful sense of bitterness in the mind of the reader, like the unwanted film sequel which renders all that went before as nothing more than exploitation, of dismissing with a slight edge of arrogance the author’s work.
Not so in the case of Javi Rey, for in his adaptation of Out In The Open what comes across is a conscious decision to laud the original and only add the effect of art to the proceedings, by doing so the two pieces can sit side by side, both having the effect of being bleached clean with subtly, of having the bounty of acting as each other’s guide to the reader.
It is in that bleached clean effect that the savagery of the piece is explored, the destitute feeling of love, of anarchy within the soul and the cinematic expression that one might in films such as No Country For Old Men. Javi Rey deals with the brutality of the text with sensitivity but also isn’t afraid to take it to the line required, of focusing in on the abuse, of the frightening aspect of power corrupting innocence and the violence meted out upon another human being when they won’t bend to the cruelty and viciousness intended.
A scintillating read, Out In The Open is respectful to the original novel and at the same time fresh, punishing and well detailed, a worthy addition to the graphic novel genre.
Javi Rey’s graphic novel adaptation of Jesús Carrasco’s Out In The Open is released on 14th April by SelfMadeHero.
Ian D. Hall