A genius presentation of creativity driving a troubled, complicated life. Couldn't be done in any other medium as it is here, with quotes and history blending into metaphor and imagery. Beautiful work that spurs deep thinking and a revisitation of Orson Welles and his work.

My many thanks to NetGalley and First Second Books for the review copy of this book in exchange for a fair opinion.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Giant by Youssef Daoudi. Distilling down a larger than life life into about 250 pages of a graphic novel is an impressive feat. The Giant is the early life and career of Orson Welles narrated by Orson Welles. The story is engaging, informative, and leaves you with an impression of Welles's personality that will stay with you forever. If you enjoy memoirs or cinema history this could be the book for you. I’d have no problem recommending this book to others.




School Librarian Notes (if you need it):

Language: minimal
Drugs: continuous tobacco use, W's cigar smoke might as well be a character
Sex: none
Nudity: one page. Just two panels of a woman walking away and you see her backside.

Wells was larger than life. He was a mass of contradictions. He was an artist. This was a very complicated book about an extremely complicated man. I learned more about him and gained a great deal of respect. Let no one be cursed with the title of genius.

Orson Welles was an enigma and also theatrical. This biography, framed as movie, book, and comic tells some highlights on Welles life, career, and struggles. Readers not knowing about Welles beyond Citizen Kane and War of the Worlds will learn more about how he worked and designed his movies. There are a few facts left out (partners, children) but overall, it is a solid biography of a man frustrated by Hollywood but couldn't leave the world of movies. Worth it for adult or college collections where cerebral graphic novels circulate or where film is discussed.

The Giant gives Orson Welles the chance narrate his own story, condensing the life and career of a fascinating, creative, and legendary individual into 272 pages. Daoudi doesn't avoid criticizing Welles, acknowledging his eccentric artistic processes. The art accompanying the story is terrific as well.

My thank to both NetGalley and First Second Books for an advance copy of this graphic novel that tells the life of one Hollywood's most creative geniuses, his ups and downs,the disdain that many in the industry had for him, until finally the world caught up and like the wine he advertised it became his time.

I had problems sleeping as a child so was usually up late watching Johnny Carson, and that is where I might have first seen Orson Welles. Large, but in charge with a voice that made on listen, wreathed in cigar smoke, laughing, smiling, and yet with a bit of sadness. Or maybe it was the wine ads, praising a wine that one knew a man like Welles wouldn't even gargle with after brushing, again with a gravitas that made the wine seem like something kings would dine on. Or the Muppet Movie, where he listened, again surrounded by cigar smoke to a group of puppets, smiled and offered them the rich and famous contract. It was probably the Muppets. I knew of Welles but I didn't know Welles, his numerous trials and tribulations in making movies. His problems with financing, problems with wives, and problems getting people to support his vision. Watching Citizen Kane the movie still mesmerizes. The way it was shot, the way it looked, all made by a child prodigy who didn't know better, who surrounded himself with people who wanted to do better. A titan in both talent, and ego. Youssef Daoudi in the graphic novel biography,The Giant: Orson Welles, the Artist and the Shadow captures all these multitudes and more.

The book begins with a large shadow over the Hollywood sign. An older, maybe not wiser, maybe not yet beaten down Orson Welles, looking like the pulp hero the Shadow whose voice he portrayed on radio, looks at his career and his life. The many things he accomplished before coming to California and the movies, and the town that finished him in so many ways. Orson Wells was a gifted child, not comfortable with being a child, but with a love to entertain. Music, magic, plays, Welles could do them all. To believe him, Welles traveled around Ireland learning the craft of theater, supporting himself and his donkey doing small shows where he could. As with much about his past, Welles is very much like the role he would play in Mr. Arkadian, a little bit full of it. By age 23 Welles had a theater group and a radio show, had scared a nation doing War of the Worlds which was thought as a little too real. Hollywood came a calling with an unprecedented deal for one so young. Film what you want, edit the way you want. This would never happen again. Citizen Kane Welles first movie is thought of a classic now, at the time it gained enemies, broke friendships, and set the ball on the downward slope for Welles, a slope that was still brilliant, but heartbreaking the further it went down.

Welles lived such a huge life, that even encapsulated just a bit is a mammoth chore. Marriages, ten years making a movie, funding problems, editorial problems, Brazil, F is for Fake. Daoudi does a fantastic job of getting to the main points, and keeping the story flowing without many of the distractions that could happen. One can easily spend pages on the different cuts to the afore mentions Mr. Arkadian aka Confidential Report aka probably something else. Doudi has done an amazing amount of research, all shown in his bibliography, and really gets to the heart of Welles a genius with an ego to match, so full of ideas, ideas that even today seem hard to sell. The art is really good a mix of black white and yellow which is well done. Everything looks crisp and clear, movie scenes put the reader there, and over it all is the looming shadow of Welles tying to direct from wherever he found himself.

A great introduction to the magic that was Orson Welles, or for fans a great way to remind oneself of all the amazing things he was involved in, and what could have been. A Heart of Darkness with only one point of view, and all the other things he wanted to share. This is what I love most about graphic novels, showing a life, showing what was, and showing what could have been.

Orson Welles was a complicated and very catalyzing person. I think this book captures his personality with all its flaws. It shows his passion which is sometimes his downfall. The story is non linear but I think that helps to give a more accurate picture of who the man was.

Orson Welles, a titan of the film industry, left an indelible mark with his innovative storytelling and cinematic techniques. His work continues to inspire filmmakers and actors around the world. While "The War of the Worlds" broadcast and "Citizen Kane" are often highlighted, Welles's life off-screen was equally fascinating. Youssef Daoudi's dedication to exploring the complexities of Welles's character shines through, offering a nuanced portrait that doesn't shy away from the more contentious aspects of his life. Daoudi's art is clearly an homage to Welles's style and further enriches the narrative, making it a compelling read for both seasoned film enthusiasts and those new to Welles's legacy. It's a testament to the enduring impact of a man who was not only ahead of his time in the arts but also a deeply intriguing figure in his personal endeavors.