Quickie: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)–***
Quickie Review
Jean-Dominque Bauby, editor of Elle magazine, suffers a stroke, leaving him paralyzed from the neck down and without the ability to speak. With the help of a speech therapist, he learns to communicate by blinking his left eye and dictates a book chronicling his “locked-in” life. A surreal, emotional experience, Schnabel adaptation of Bauby’s memoir is inspired even if it doesn’t reach the dramatic peaks it shoots for. Bauby’s still sharp sense of humor despite his condition (likely pulled directly from his memoir) maintains the film, while Max von Sydow’s performance as Bauby’s father achieves the highest level of sincerity. Also starring Mathieu Amalric as Bauby.
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