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Artist Turns GET OUT, THE SHAPE OF WATER, and More Into Comics

It seems like most major Hollywood movies of the last year were based on comic books or other media before getting their chance on the big screen. But what if some of the best films from 2017 were adapted into comics? Artist Ben Matsuya recently released five single page comics based upon Get Out, The Shape of Water, Okja, The Florida Project, and Good Time. Ben and his brother, John Matsuya, collaborated on these comics by breaking down each film into five panels that distill as much of the story as possible. “I don’t remember who exactly came up with the idea for the five panel comics,” Ben Matsuya told Nerdist. “But we both liked the idea of merging our love of movies and comics together into one project.”

With Matsuya’s permission, we are sharing the comics as well as his thoughts about the most powerful moment in each film. Consider yourselves warned that there are massive spoilers ahead for the five movies mentioned above. Read at your own risk!

Get Out

“With Get Out, the scene I thought was the most impactful was the fall into the ‘Sunken Place,'” recalled Matsuya. “First of all, it is just great imagery! But it also brilliantly depicts visually the deep seeded horror that is racism itself. It shows how racism in the 21st Century is no longer overt and out in the open (well…for the most part), but more subtle, internalized and buried deep inside an individual and a culture.”

Okja

“The moment in Okja that really affected me the most was the scene when Mija, discovers the industrial factory farm where the Super Pigs are being slaughtered,” noted Matsuya. “I don’t see how anyone can look at that scene and not think about our own treatment of real animals and the way we consume meat.”

The Shape of Water

“I don’t know if there is a single moment I love the most in The Shape of Water,” admitted Matsuya. “I just love all of it. The decision by Guillermo Del Toro to make it an ‘adult fairy tale’ was so smart. By doing so, the audience doesn’t bother asking how or why things happen but rather what it means. And the message of this movie couldn’t be more vital: see one another in yourself and love them for who they are.”

The Florida Project

“The moment I love most in The Florida Project is this scene where Willem Dafoe’s character, the manager of a motel complex on the outskirts of Disney World, confronts a pedophile,” said Matsuya. “It really shows the major theme of the movie, about how American culture–represented by both the Disney gloss–encourages us to live in a state of infantilization, even as real dangers lurk all around.”

Good Time

Good Time is a movie that is so underrated,” shared Matsuya. “I believe it has one of the most iconic film moments in the last five years: Buddy Durress’ manic, stream of conscious, hilarious monologue in the backseat of a car describing his drug fueled run from the cops is that moment.”

Ben Matsuya drew the comics using Clip Studio Paint on a Wacom Intuos 4 Pro. John Matsuya worked as a co-writer and editor on this collaboration. Both of the Matsuya brothers are comic creators, and they are currently working on Midnight Massacre, about a theme park where the monsters are all too real.

If you want to see more of Matsuya’s work, you can read the first two issues of Jupiter Jet on ComiXology. It’s a steampunk adventure series co-written by DC All Access host Jason Inman and Top Cow’s Ashley Victoria Robinson. You can also check out Matsuya’s Instagram account for more comics or his official site.

What do you think about the Matsuya brothers’ comic book take on these five films? Share your thoughts below!

Images: Ben Matsuya

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