A new edition of the hard-hitting graphic novel that inspired the Academy Award-nominated 2005 motion picture starring Viggo Mortensen, Ed Harris a...
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Dec 21, 2011
Chuck
rated it: 
Original graphic novel upon which the David Cronenberg film of the same name was based. Black-and-white artwork, which employs a kind of agitated single-line stroke and hatching to build up textures and shadows, is well done and effective. As far as the story goes, this is a clear example of the film adaptation being the more coherent and effective version. The biggest drawback of the book's plot is too many pages devoted to the details of Tom's criminal past. This dilutes the air of mystery and
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Sep 27, 2011
Matt
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It's tough to review this book having seen the movie first except to say that despite my respect for Cronenberg the movie was, in my eyes, a massive failure at portraying the events laid out in this graphic novel. The Vision alone is so vastly different: the art here is so gritty and perfectly sets the tone and atmosphere for the coming and occurring violence; the story flows much better here, and takes its time unfolding while still keeping a straight pace (where I felt that the film seemed to
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Jan 22, 2011
Sarah
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When I first saw the David Cronenberg film, A History of Violence, based on this graphic novel, I knew nothing of the book. I found the movie deeply disturbing and as a result, once I learned about the book, I was a bit apprehensive about reading it. I already knew the topic and did not feel any driving need to become disturbed again by the same material. However, I picked the book up this week on a whim and was pleasantly surprised. The things in the movie that disturbed me to such an extent ar
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Jan 16, 2011
Kaion
rated it: 
Graphic novel that became a movie. Two thieves attack/ try to rob a diner owner (who happens to be a well-liked family sort of guy in a small town), only to be efficiently neutralized by him. Said story hits the media, attracting unsavory types who think they know him from the past.
Verdict: Okay. I wasn't thrilled about the artwork. It was serviceable and I liked the pacing, but all the characters looked the same to me (they need weird hairstyles! and implausible outfits!)- which kind More...
Verdict: Okay. I wasn't thrilled about the artwork. It was serviceable and I liked the pacing, but all the characters looked the same to me (they need weird hairstyles! and implausible outfits!)- which kind More...
Jan 08, 2012
Aidan
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jul 08, 2010
Patrick
rated it: 
Stayed up all night reading this, and now that it's over I wish I hadn't. It started out alright I guess, with sort of a western/cape fear feel, but the stilted comic book dialogue didn't grip me and I found the crosshatching art claustrophobic (probably deliberate) and unfocused, sort of like a muddy snowstorm.
But this book became truly stupid after the first act- after an okay setup nothing but joyless, nihilistic violence happens, in a sort of bastard child of Death Wish 3 and Saw More...
But this book became truly stupid after the first act- after an okay setup nothing but joyless, nihilistic violence happens, in a sort of bastard child of Death Wish 3 and Saw More...
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Jun 22, 2011
Mark
rated it:
This is the graphic novel that inspired the Academy Award nominated motion picture starring Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ed Harris and William Hurt. Prior to watching the film, I never heard of this book.
In A History of Violence, Tom McKenna is a family man, a diner owner in a nameless small town in America who got his 15 minutes of fame when he thwarts a robbery at his establishment. His new-found fame draws attention of mobsters who have been looking to settle a score with him f More...
In A History of Violence, Tom McKenna is a family man, a diner owner in a nameless small town in America who got his 15 minutes of fame when he thwarts a robbery at his establishment. His new-found fame draws attention of mobsters who have been looking to settle a score with him f More...
Dec 14, 2008
dara
rated it:
I watched the movie before I even realized it exists as a graphic novel. The two differ extremely. The movie took the main character Tom, a few aspects of plot, and moved in an entirely different direction. I'm glad for this, because it was more believable--I don't think it would've translated well into a film otherwise. For example, when someone reveals to his wife that he has murdered people and lied about his entire past for over a decade, I wouldn't expect her to accept it without the slight
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Dec 21, 2011
Ben
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i love the cronenberg adaptation and had been meaning to read this for a while just to see if it ended the same way (i like the movie's ending but always had a hard time believing that a graphic novel would end in such suspension)... well, it doesn't end the same way... it also doesn't middle the same way... beginning's the same, though, pretty much. it's much cleaner and simpler and more black-and-white than the movie; ties up all the loose ends and makes the main character likable (he was tryi
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Feb 01, 2012
Jo
rated it: 
I must admit I've never seen the film, and I can see that this is a graphic novel that could be easily translated into a gore fest with little delicacy. However, the graphic novel treats what could be quite a sterotypical story with great deftness and feeling. Tom McKenna is in hiding, outwardly a pillar of his local small town, married with a little girl, the proprieter of a diner in an idyllic close knit neighbourhood. But when he shoots and kills one of a pair of predatory killers who try to
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Sep 23, 2011
Tom
rated it:
The art in this didn't do a whole lot for me. Black and white illustration, and it was often times hard to see which character was whom on the page. The story starts with a fun conceit of the ordinary man swept into something sordid and dangerous and in that way Tom McKenna is a fairly good protagonist. The first two chapters I enjoyed but the third gets a bit silly and gratuitous. In other words, it went off the Frank Miller deep end.
I had seen the movie previously, and if I recall More...
I had seen the movie previously, and if I recall More...
Aug 29, 2010
Deborah
rated it:
This graphic novel has a very suspenseful, interesting, and disturbing story. It begins with a random act of violence, which eventually introduces the reader to Tom McKenna, small town diner owner in Michigan with some big secrets from his past. When the mafia comes to town, things spiral into ever-increasing violence while Tom and his family try to escape it. What kept me from giving this 4 stars was the illustration style. It was more sketchy than I like, sometimes making it difficult to f
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Jan 11, 2009
arashi
rated it:
Bukunya…udah baca.
Filmnya…belum nonton.
Kekerasan tidak hanya diawali dari kekerasan, tapi kadang dimulai dari suatu kebaikan. Niat Joey yang ingin membantu neneknya malah membuatnya terlibat dalam kekerasan yang tidak ada akhirnya. Ketika dua buronan kejam menyerang di suatu kota kecil, secara perlahan sejarah kelam kekerasan masa lalu Tom McKenna alias Joey mulai terkuak.
Buku ini sudah difilmkan dengan judul yang sama dan dibintangi oleh Viggo Mortensen dan Ed Har More...
Filmnya…belum nonton.
Kekerasan tidak hanya diawali dari kekerasan, tapi kadang dimulai dari suatu kebaikan. Niat Joey yang ingin membantu neneknya malah membuatnya terlibat dalam kekerasan yang tidak ada akhirnya. Ketika dua buronan kejam menyerang di suatu kota kecil, secara perlahan sejarah kelam kekerasan masa lalu Tom McKenna alias Joey mulai terkuak.
Buku ini sudah difilmkan dengan judul yang sama dan dibintangi oleh Viggo Mortensen dan Ed Har More...
Jul 22, 2011
Frank
rated it:
As a taut thriller it will do, I guess. I could do without the gruesome Saw-type of horror at the end (doubtless exactly the kind of thing that attracted director Cronenberg to this story). And why does dialogue in comics often have to be so lacklustre, wooden and melodramatic? What person in real life ever says of himself: "I'm a decent law-abiding citizen, I don't have to put up with this"? Nobody calls himself a law-abiding citizen, unless ironically. And irony isn't exactly what yo
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Jan 27, 2009
Benjamin
rated it:
I never got around to seeing the movie made out of this book, so I had thought that I would read the graphic novel that it was based on. This was my first "graphic novel" that I read and I had a hard time getting used to the black-and-white visual style of the book. It showed amazing skill to evoke the feeling and movement, though it was a little hard on the eyes.
The reason I gave it two stars was just the over the top violence and gore in the story. It was almost nausea More...
The reason I gave it two stars was just the over the top violence and gore in the story. It was almost nausea More...
Jul 02, 2009
rommy
rated it:
Amazingly quick read, I finished it in just over an hour while waiting to board a flight.
The story was a cliche revenge story of a man whose past catches up with him. Perhaps the only really compelling thing about this was that it was based on a true story. The characters and the dialogue were lukewarm at best, but the book was an entertaining, light summer read.
I do look forward to renting the movie, as I think Cronenberg can do no wrong, and perhaps bring some creativit More...
The story was a cliche revenge story of a man whose past catches up with him. Perhaps the only really compelling thing about this was that it was based on a true story. The characters and the dialogue were lukewarm at best, but the book was an entertaining, light summer read.
I do look forward to renting the movie, as I think Cronenberg can do no wrong, and perhaps bring some creativit More...
Jul 23, 2009
Yofish
rated it:
Really 4.5
I read this because I saw the movie. It starts out the same--nice small-town diner-owner foils a robbery from some really violent guys. Achieves a measure of fame. Which attracts some mob guys from New York who think that he's someone who did them wrong a long time ago. In the book, there's the compelling point where he's missing half a finger, and the mob guy kept the other half of the finger of the guy done him wrong. But diner-owner insists it's a mistaken identity More...
I read this because I saw the movie. It starts out the same--nice small-town diner-owner foils a robbery from some really violent guys. Achieves a measure of fame. Which attracts some mob guys from New York who think that he's someone who did them wrong a long time ago. In the book, there's the compelling point where he's missing half a finger, and the mob guy kept the other half of the finger of the guy done him wrong. But diner-owner insists it's a mistaken identity More...
Apr 22, 2008
Julia
rated it:
I read A History of Violence over the course of the weekend. I typically read graphic novels in one sitting if I can, but this was a novel I had to take in smaller bites. The introduction gives a sporadic account of how John Wagner came up with the idea for the novel's underlying threads. Without giving anything away, he provides the reader an idea that this book will be unsettling because it speaks to the ideas of "What if..." that plaque us in relationships. What if I found out t
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Aug 25, 2008
Brandon
rated it:
I became interested in this graphic novel after seeing the film version by David Cronenberg. I enjoyed the movie and wanted to see where it all began so I picked the original graphic novel. The story begins with an attempted robbery in a small-town diner owned by Tom McKenna, who manages to kill one of the would-be robbers and hospitalize the other. Suddenly, Tom's a local hero and, as a result, is getting some unwanted attention from New York mafiosos who believe Tom looks suspiciously famil
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May 12, 2007
Simon
rated it:
A brisk read, and I'm still not convinced John Wagner is anything more than a consistent journeyman writer. However, the escalation of the violent acts, coupled with the reality the book takes care to ground the reader in, really pays off with the final shock. I'm not convinced that it bears thinking about too closely, and the conclusion is a bit pat, but it's carefully constructed.
I've never been a fan of Vince Locke's art-- he is an uncomfortable half-way house between Guy Davis an More...
I've never been a fan of Vince Locke's art-- he is an uncomfortable half-way house between Guy Davis an More...
Jul 08, 2011
Cia
rated it:
I read the graphic novel before seeing the movie, and only sort of remembered the premise from when it came to theaters in 2005.
On the whole, I actually really liked the book. It plays out the way a movie would and the imagery at the end is really gruesome/ awesome... but the end also feels rushed. It takes you the entire book to get to the climax and then its over within a few pages. Not necessarily disappointing... but I would have loved more.
I guess thats a good thing.
On the whole, I actually really liked the book. It plays out the way a movie would and the imagery at the end is really gruesome/ awesome... but the end also feels rushed. It takes you the entire book to get to the climax and then its over within a few pages. Not necessarily disappointing... but I would have loved more.
I guess thats a good thing.
Oct 15, 2010
Stacy
rated it:
Though this is a solid story, it's a standard one of haunted pasts and mob revenge. Tom McKenna is the congenial owner of a diner in Nowhere, U.S.A., a man who revels in his family small-town life—a life full of softball games, cookouts, and church.
But this life is shattered when two thugs show up at his diner with the intent to rob and kill. Tom successfully kills them and makes national news. Here the real trouble starts. Some mobsters from New York show up, certain he is Joey Cusac More...
But this life is shattered when two thugs show up at his diner with the intent to rob and kill. Tom successfully kills them and makes national news. Here the real trouble starts. Some mobsters from New York show up, certain he is Joey Cusac More...
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Feb 05, 2011
Nuril
rated it:
my first graphic novel.
and decided to like it very much.
its thick and gross. hahah
iya, belum pernah baca komik setebal ini dengan gambar yang awut2an. (okay gue gak tau gimana gambar yang bagus itu, kalo komik kan gambarnya bersih2). tapi gambar di graphic novel itu emang gini ya, realistis, dan dark.
sebenernya ceritanya gak ada yang memukau... meski lumayan. tapi jiji. karena kita bayanginnya film, jadinya banyak adegan yang uh... gore.... hahahah...
and i decided to buy
and decided to like it very much.
its thick and gross. hahah
iya, belum pernah baca komik setebal ini dengan gambar yang awut2an. (okay gue gak tau gimana gambar yang bagus itu, kalo komik kan gambarnya bersih2). tapi gambar di graphic novel itu emang gini ya, realistis, dan dark.
sebenernya ceritanya gak ada yang memukau... meski lumayan. tapi jiji. karena kita bayanginnya film, jadinya banyak adegan yang uh... gore.... hahahah...
and i decided to buy
Jun 17, 2010
Laura
rated it:
I'm a sucker for a good graphic novel. I bought this one second hand after a trip to the farmers market and was finished in time for the pride parade at 1:00pm, so it was a quick read, but a good story and well done. not preachy, depressing, or overly stylized. Some of the violence was a little over the top, but that's expected in this genre, and works with the plot. Highly recommended to teenagers and up (due to, unsuprisingly, the violence).
Oct 30, 2010
Andrea
rated it:
Like most other people, I read this graphic novel after I was blown away by the movie version.
Unfortunately, this is an extremely rare case of the movie being better than the book. The story was odd, unbelievable, and not very interesting. Well, except for the end, which was pretty disgusting. It kind of reminded me of Frank Millar's Sin City (the Yellow Man section) except tired, lame and without a point.
I do not recommend for anyone.
Unfortunately, this is an extremely rare case of the movie being better than the book. The story was odd, unbelievable, and not very interesting. Well, except for the end, which was pretty disgusting. It kind of reminded me of Frank Millar's Sin City (the Yellow Man section) except tired, lame and without a point.
I do not recommend for anyone.
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Mar 27, 2009
Christa
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Feb 22, 2009
Nurul
rated it:
Graphic novel yang pernah difilmkan dengan judul yang sama. Heran, ternyata saya belum pernah nonton. Tertarik beli karena penasaran bagaimana kekerasan model mafia digambarkan dalam bentuk komik.
Baca buku ini serasa berada di dalam filmnya. Sekali baca gak pingin berhenti. Tapi ini PG rated sesuai dengan judulnya yang pake violence.
Baca buku ini serasa berada di dalam filmnya. Sekali baca gak pingin berhenti. Tapi ini PG rated sesuai dengan judulnya yang pake violence.
Mar 30, 2009
Christopher
rated it:
can you ever really escape your past? much less polished and tidy than the movie...and it's better that way. there's no glorified past of being the brother and enforcer to a crime boss in this. just a kid who tried to make some money and a name for himself the wrong way. gritty and violent. it lives up to the title.
May 19, 2008
Joe
rated it:
First, I was surprised to realize that the movie adaptation of this book only tells about 1/3rd of the story, so if you are happening to read this review and have only seen the movie, you might want to read the book to find out the other 2/3rds of the story.
Second, I liked this story quite a bit. It reminded me of the work of Garth Ennis, who is one of my top 4 or 5 writers in the comic industry.
But the art style drove me nuts. I prefer clean drawing, with Danny Hellman More...
Second, I liked this story quite a bit. It reminded me of the work of Garth Ennis, who is one of my top 4 or 5 writers in the comic industry.
But the art style drove me nuts. I prefer clean drawing, with Danny Hellman More...
Sep 01, 2010
Gordon
rated it:
It's funny how similar my opinion of the movie and the book are, despite the huge differences between the two. Both of them start out very strong, but both the film and the comic — despite having utterly different endings — end terribly.
