The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

A couple of nights ago, I watched a French film called Le Scaphandre et le papillon (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly). I had heard of this movie before. It played at the Hopkins Center for the Arts at Dartmouth last winter. I remember seeing the sign for it and wanting to see it, but it might have run concurrent with Friday Night Ball. It's a shame because I would've loved to see it in a cinema setting rather than at 2 AM in my living room. That being said, you don't miss Friday Night Ball. There were people waiting for me, expecting me to show up and I couldn't skip. Also, I had only saw a sign for the movie and knew nothing about the film.

Basically, it's the true story of Jean-Dominique Bauby, the Editor-in-Chief of Elle. Jean-Do, as his friends called him, suffered a severe stroke of some sort which rendered his entire body paralyzed except for his eyes. In the film, a doctor mentioned damage to the brain stem? that created a "locked-in syndrome." In other words, Jean-Do was essentially a vegetable. The movie opens with him in the hospital, waking up from what I imagine was a coma. The camera takes on his point of view, as it does for a significant portion of the movie, and we are exposed to all his thoughts since he cannot speak. The fascinating thing about this film was the extraordinary story of Jean-Do Bauby. This guy had the life, but lost everything. His mistress, who he left his wife and children for, never visits him until the very end. He loses his love, his career, his mobility, and his freedom. There are many times in the film where an image of Jean-Do in a diving bell (think Cuba Gooding Jr. in Men of Honor, that diving suit) relays a message of quiet desperation. Watching, I tried to put myself in his shoes and felt trapped and completely suffocated. It's amazing that this man was able to get by his own self pity and live his last days to their fullest. It's a wonderful testament to the resilience and power of the human spirit. In fact, a friend of Bauby told him: "hang onto the human inside of you and you will survive." There's a lot more I want to say on the plot and what certain imagery might mean, but I don't want to spoil the details for anyone. I really recommend giving this film a chance. You have to read subtitles, but I think it's really worth it. There is a lot of genius in this film from the way the speech therapist teaches Jean-Do to communicate to the camera work and imagery. I have more to say on the subject, but I also want to catch Top Chef so my thought will have to wait. To be continued...