The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)

Based on the book of the same name 'The Diving Bell and the Butterfly' tells the true story of Jean-Dominique Bauby, the editor of French Elle who had a stroke in 1995 and ended up suffering from 'Locked in Syndrome' a sever form of paralysis that left him able to communicate only by blinking his eyes. Bauby dictated the 140-odd page book, which tells of his experiences with the condition, via an assistant reading through the alphabet arranged by letter frequency and his blinking when he wanted to chose a letter. This painstaking process, and the painstaking life he lead prior to dying from pneumonia in 1997 are beautifully rendered, its a strong at times powerful film, though not really fun to watch. Matthieu Amlric plays Bauby, he gets to move around during flash back sequences but mostly he just sits there, his performance powerfully non the less (Almric is perhaps best known for playing the Bond villain in 'Quantum of Solace' released the next year). This movie was filmed in the actual hospital where Bauby lived the last two years of his life. Max von Sydow has a small but important role as Bauby's father, who was also suffering from admittedly less sever mobility problems of his own. A real achievement for director Julian Schnabel, an American (though the film was shot in French) who comes from the world of painting. ****