Muybridge

Gr 10 Up–Delisle’s graphic novel explores the life of the “Father of the Motion Picture,” but ultimately misses the mark with muddy details and confusing side stories. Muybridge is a famous photographer known for his pioneering work in photographic studies of motion and motion-picture projection, whose images settled the hotly debated topic at the time of whether a horse ever has all four hooves off the ground at the same time. Delisle includes many captivating and strange details of Muybridge’s life, including murdering his wife’s lover, going uncredited for the horse pictures he took, being rejected by Thomas Edison as a possible partner in film, and more. Throughout the book, other important players and photographs from that era are shown, though these side stories feel disconnected from the main story and lack a clear reason for inclusion. Much of the information though is fascinating for those interested in photography or cinema. The clear highlights of the book are in the real photographs that Muybridge and others took. This does, however, include some graphic images like the dynamite explosion of a live mule, death portraits, and many nude photos and drawings. Little color is used throughout, aligning with the style of the photographs at the time, which sets the period well. The one place we see large swaths of color (red and yellow) is during the murder of Muybridge’s wife’s lover and his ultimate acquittal. This use of color seems to imply an importance to the scene, but it lasts only a few pages as more of a side note than anything else, like other subplots throughout.