Weekly Review -- Diving into thyself

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007) -- As touching and thrilling as it is evocative, this Julian Schnabel masterpiece serves to remind us about the beauty and fragility of human existence. This is the true story of ELLE magazine editor Jean-Dominique Bauby, who, faced with insurmountable odds, still managed to come out a winner in the game of life. After a stroke, Bauby (Mathieu Amalric) finds himself victim of "locked-in syndrome" -- completely aware of everything around him, he is only able to communicate using his left eye, the one part of his body that is not paralyzed. With the help of a speech therapist (Marie-Josée Croze), who has devised a special alphabet-based system, Bauby succeeds in communicating his wants and frustrations to family and friends. More than that, however, he starts using his imagination to spiritually escape his physical prison... Having proved with Basquiat that he is a visually oriented filmmaker, Schnabel demonstrates his skills as a neo-expressionist painter on celluloid once again, using imagery of exotic landscapes and lush decadence to show a world that Bauby transports himself to. The film envelops the audience in layers of insular emotions and hard-pressed longing. The world shuts down through Bauby's condition, but also opens up through his mind's eye and ingenious fantasies. The acting is admirable. Amalric is fantastic as the protagonist, expressing an otherworldly measure of emotion through practically non-existent physical expression. Max von Sydow's portrayal of Bauby's father is equally poignant, while Emmanuelle Seigner is impressive as Bauby's long-suffering companion. The first-person perspective is, in my opinion, the only way to tell this story in its authenticity; any other way of storytelling would have taken away the truth of the narrative. As a whole, the film is mesmerizing, taking us on a journey through an escape and, above all, celebrating the joy of life. If you seek to find a light in the darkness, this is the film to watch.

10/10