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BaftaBaby 
"Always entranced by cinema."
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 Posted - 12/24/2007 : 11:30:48
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The Diving Bell and The Butterfly
Imagine you're in a diving bell, one of those clunky old-fashioned suits that allows you to view the deep-sea world. You're tethered to your land of safety while you become an imprisoned observer. You cannot speak or move within your suit, but you drift around at the mercy of the currents, totally aware of everything and your reactions to it.
Locked-in syndrome, a rare kind of stroke, left Elle editor Jean-Dominique Bauby equally imprisoned by total paralysis below the neck until his death two years later. It was 1995 when Bauby was 43, at the height of his career. Though separated from the mother of his three children, he had an affectionate relationship with them, and a passionate one with his mistress. He'd become friends with his aging father, and lived La Dolce Vita.
After the stroke he could only communicate by blinks of his only good eye and a bit of grunting.
The film made by Julian Schnabel documenting Bauby's extraordinary story - perfectly played by Mathieu Amalric - won the Best Director award at Cannes. To be fair, it's a gripping film indeed, in the same way as My Left Foot, and Bauby is an apt Gallic parallel to Christy Brown. Both men escaped the prison of the bodies that betrayed them and rode their imaginations to produce books which continue to captivate and move people. But, equally fair, there's a danger any reaction to the film is guided too closely by a reaction to its extraordinary hero.
Working to Ronald Harwood's elegant screenplay, Schnabel's imaginative ploy - as far as possible - is to imprison you in the point-of-view of Bauby, nicknamed Jean-Do by friends and family. And, as he relearns to recognise and analyse the world again, you the viewer are gradually released by the initial restraints. It's a clever trick and it really works. You're never bamboozled by false sentiment, but you feel connected throughout.
I'm not sure it's a great film - well, no, it isn't. But it's a very good one. Among an excellent cast, including Max von Sydow as Jean-Do's father, is a stand-out performance by Emmanuelle Seigner as his wife Celine. Completely different here from the equally well-judged out-of-control hooker in La Vie En Rose, she's one of those quiet beauties who's able to convey real depth of emotion in tiny moments, finding uniqueness in the mundane.
What about the Butterfly? Ah, you'll see.
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Edited by - BaftaBaby on 12/24/2007 11:33:10 |
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turrell 
"Ohhhh Ohhhh Ohhhh Ohhhh "
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Posted - 02/24/2008 : 18:38:33
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| I really enjoyed this especially his wit and the editing and direction was flawless - really gave you a sense of how he must have felt but maintained an artistic beauty in doing so - any reason why this was not in teh best foreign language film category? Afterall the director was noiminated and it was a very strong film. |
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Demisemicenturian 
"Four ever European"
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Posted - 02/27/2008 : 18:45:39
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| I really enjoyed it too - and had no idea till the end that it was a true story. B.B., I'm not sure what you mean by "he relearns to recognise and analyse the world", though. I don't remember any point where this ability was absent. Spoiler-ish, though already mentioned (and in theory real-life events cannot be spoilers): It's so frustrating when his eye gets stitched up: there's some reference to it not lubricating itself or something, but no real explanation or indication that it's going to be permanent. That's a good example of transmitting Bauby's frustration to us. And I think maybe it is a great film, as I'm not sure it could have been better. |
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turrell
"Ohhhh Ohhhh Ohhhh Ohhhh "
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Posted - 02/28/2008 : 01:54:41
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| The screener copy I had said it was not eleigible for Foreign Language Film Oscar - anyone know why? |
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MisterBadIdea 
"PLZ GET MILK, KTHXBYE"
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Posted - 02/28/2008 : 02:13:41
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| Really just amazingly directed. Not quite a four-star classic but really very good. Losing the use of my hands is one of my deepest fears -- this was harrowing for me. Definitely way better than the overrated My Left Foot. |
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Demisemicenturian
"Four ever European"
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Posted - 02/28/2008 : 02:16:00
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There are always stupid reasons to do with where the funding has come from etc. I think it would be much preferable if the Oscar were for films not in English and from any country (including English-speaking ones), but the Academy would never go for that as it would be too much hassle for them to bother to assess all the possible films themselves. It's easier to just make countries nominate.
Which countries are allowed to nominate films? Are there any (African ones or India?) with English as an official or widespread language that can nominate. I assume (given the funding stipulation on films such as this one) that the U.S., Canada and Great Britain cannot nominate ones in Spanish, French or Welsh. I wonder how it's defined. It's my understanding that the States doesn't even have an official language, so it cannot technically even be on that basis. |
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Demisemicenturian
"Four ever European"
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Posted - 02/28/2008 : 02:17:02
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| Just looked it up. English is official in only 28 states and not at federal level. |
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turrell
"Ohhhh Ohhhh Ohhhh Ohhhh "
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Posted - 02/28/2008 : 02:57:49
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We (the US) do not have an official language - probably because Ben Franklin wanted it to be French so the founding fathers tabled it - a lot of anti-immigration nuts want to make it the official language and outlaw Spanish on signs in federal buildings, etc - but we are too multi-cultural to let it happen.
The movie was distributed by Miramax - but I didn't know if they funded it or just bought US rights. |
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Ali
"Those aren't pillows."
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Posted - 02/28/2008 : 08:26:57
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In order for a film to be eligible for best foreign language film, it needs to be nominated by the original country. France put forward Persepolis instead of Diving Bell.
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BaftaBaby
"Always entranced by cinema."
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Posted - 02/28/2008 : 08:31:00
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quote:
Originally posted by Ali
In order for a film to be eligible for best foreign language film, it needs to be nominated by the original country. France put forward Persepolis instead of Diving Bell.
I was just going to say that! Ali's absolutely right 
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turrell
"Ohhhh Ohhhh Ohhhh Ohhhh "
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Posted - 02/28/2008 : 15:36:25
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| Yes but to my understanding Diving Bell was not eligible - it said so in the marketing materials that came with my wife's SAG screener. I did not see Persopolis, but I thought Diving Bell was one of the best films in any language this year. |
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Whippersnapper. 
"A fourword thinking guy."
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Posted - 05/04/2008 : 20:35:48
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Whipper rarely rushes these things, so he's only just got around to seeing this film.
I was struck by the comparison between it and a Spanish film MAR ADENTRO (2004) starring one Javier Bardem who you might just get to hear of someday.
There the situation was less melodramatic as the quad could speak, and hadn't lost a Dolce Vita lifestyle as well as his movement.
The DIVING BELL certainly had the prettier women but a fair case could be made that MAR ADENTRO is a more satisfying experience because the protagonist can communicate his feelings verbally. That makes it rather less surreal and more emotionally accessible.
Anyone else seen both of these films?
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The Diving Bell and The Butterfly - tiny spoilers
