This story ran on 4/16/2013 on Dane101.com

…Like Kat, I found the animation jaw-dropping, which was, if not always gorgeous in this dark, grotesque film, then at least perfect for the mood, right down to one character’s articulated paper cat. Sullivan deserves his accolades. Moreover, the mix of styles suited the story, and once I figured out that his barest-bones black-and-white pencil animations indicated memory and the past, I loved even the unfinished quality of those.

But this story was still, at first, confusing. I even had trouble telling some of the characters apart at first, before I realized they’re always wearing the same clothes, driving the same vehicles. It settles in more as a jumble of sensory impressions, then, and the plot slowly emerges from there.

And what a plot. The car crash with the nun is only the kickoff to the final act of a story that actually, we come to learn, began years ago. Victor Blue, whose dysfunctional adulthood traces back to his dysfunctional childhood and alcoholic father, must now solve his father’s disappearance for legal reasons. It’s his past that we spend our time in, for the most part, and it’s heavy and sad…

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