The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Prior watching the Diving Bell and the Butterfly I read a quite of few reviews claiming the brilliance of the film and getting stunning reviews so I guess my opinion and expectations of the film were incredible high even before I pressed play. I expected this brilliant, ground breaking film that will be edged in my memory for years to come, where I will be convincing everyone I know that they should watch it. So brilliant that even the mention of the word butterfly or bell will make me stop and reminisce of the good times I spend watching the film. I would be so moved by the entire film that I go on and learn how to speak French so I could enjoy it in French and repeat the lines in random places. Okay I will stop clearly I'm getting a little carried away and I wasn't exactly thinking that at the time.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is a story of a relatively young man possible only 40 years whom suffered an unexplainable and sudden stroke which has left in paralyzed basically in his entire body. But despite the complications Jean-Dominique Bauby (Mathieu Amalric - better known as the villain in James Bond Quantum of Solace) survives and lives to tell his story. Through a series of eye blinks and a vivid imagination Jean-Dom tells of dreams, flashbacks and a past that he clearly lived to the fullest which is to be documented in book.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is a touching and emotional drama piece with both depth and complexities. Although most of the film is shot in the perspective of Jean-Dom and therefore only ever seeing his line of view which means sometimes you can only really see people's chest and hips and yet each character shows so much and tells so much without every really saying anything or even only seeing little snippets of their faces. Despite being paralyzed it seemed Jean-Dom had charmed his way into everyone's heart. I don't whether they were charmed by his mere presence or simply out of pity they seemed to care much for him; personally I believe it’s the latter. It may not come as a surprise but every little happens in terms of action or excitement, its not melodramatic which I found made the film drag. This may be due to my experience with film which usually has constant dialog or constant action or something happening to engage you. However the same cannot be said for the Diving Bell and the Butterfly, there is shots of landscapes and nothing it particular. Which I can assume its for emotional impact on the viewer but I simply didn't feel it. Yet even though with apparent lack of story this film does keep you wondering, how is it going to end? Where is all this going? Is he going to actually finish the book?
However the most interesting and essentially the most entertaining are Jean-Dom's internal thoughts. It becomes pretty obvious that his brain is functioning and is completely intact with the ability to think of absurd ideas and even be witty yet despite all this he can't even bath himself.
Without a doubt the film was visually engaging. The hand held camera gave this personal touch to basically every scene, making you feel that you are either watching a home video or actually viewing life through his eyes. There was clear sense of nostalgia as if you and Jean-Dom go way back to a point you are watching your home videos (even though I’m not French in any means). However there was one scene that I simply could not handle, the constant movements of the camera just made me feel a little nauseous rather than nostalgic.
So finally, did the Diving Bell and the Butterfly live up to my expectations? Well not quite, as much as I enjoyed the film and how it made me feel many different emotions and made me really think about life and how delicate it is however as piece of entertainment it fell a little short, sometimes it just felt like the movie just won't end while other times you so engaged and curious that film pretty much engulfs you into its world. I know what you are thinking, that was very bipolar of me - do I like it or not? I do and really do but I just don't believe it’s the greatest film that I have come across and therefore you should keep expectations realistic. Nevertheless I recommend that you take some time to watch film because I believe its worth it.
image from Wiki
