Reviews

The Bun Field by Amanda Vähämäki

rebadee's review

4.0

The Bun Field is a bizarre nightmare on the surface. Drawing from sea monsters, lost teeth, back-bar dentistry, talking cats (& dogs & bears), and human-faced food, Vähämäki fills this world with disturbing images. The delicate pencil-work and scene-by-scene tracking reveals the gorgeousness of the mundane and terrible. Though it may seem the story is lost in the Finnish-to-English translation, the work transcends language and lands in that part of the subconscious that makes the skin crawl and heart race without any cogent explanation.

jimmylorunning's review

5.0

I don't normally read graphic novels, but after flipping through this book at the store, I knew I had to buy it. The panels consist of pencil sketches: rough, charming, and full of flaws, but each frame seemed to capture a lot of essence and detail. She uses smudges and occasionally erased drawings (where you can see the ghost of a figure right next to the final drawing) in a way that is really evocative. Her pencil strokes are varied and full of energy, some parts looking as if she woke up at 4a.m. to scribble them down as fast as humanly possible and other parts looking like she barely touched the paper. I love how she draws the bear, and I also love the dog, the snail-man, the woman on the crutches, and all the landscapes that look so familiar, yet are done with such concision. The story itself is moody and surreal, with occasional glimpses of humor, and I thought the drawing style really brought that mood out perfectly.



Bonus: an interview with Amanda Vahamaki.

leerazer's review

2.0

I stopped watching Donnie Darko halfway through.