Review of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007) by Stuart K — 12 May 2009
From Julian Schnabel, director of Basquiat (1996) and Before Night Falls (2000), comes this tragic but also uplifting true story. From looking at the plot for this film, it would sound depressing, but not in fact so, it's quite uplifting in fact, and it's a unique view of the world seen through the eyes, (or eye) of one man.
The man in question is Jean-Dominique Bauby (Mathieu Amalric), editor of the highly successful French fashion magazine Elle, who at the age of 42 in December 1995, suffered a massive stroke which paralyzed him from head to toe, all except his left eye.
It was using blinking, the movement of his left eye and the help of a frequency-ordered alphabet, that he was able to dictate a book about what it's like to be in his condition. The title refers to him being trapped, like in a Diving Bell suit, but his imagination and mind are still free, like a butterfly.
It's similiar to something like My Left Foot, it sounds depressing, and Bauby comes across as unlikable and ungrateful for all that's being done for him, but he comes to accept with what happened to him, and he learns to apprieciate well.
It's a very artistic film, done in an unconventional manner, (kudos to cinematographer Janusz Kaminski), and it's touching and moving piece.
This review of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007) was written by Stuart K on 12 May 2009.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly has generally received very positive reviews.
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