The Diving Bell and the Butterfly - a closer look

After spending the last week studying cinematography, I can honestly say that it's something I've taken for granted. I especially realized this after viewing The Diving Bell and the Butterly and Visions of Light (as boring as it was!). I've learned that cinematography isn't just how the movie is filmed - it can change the entire aesthetic of the film and how we, the audience, interpret it. Although much importance still lies in the writing and overall story of a film, cinematographers are the true artists behind it all, in my opinion. Cinematography can truly make or break a film.

In The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, the use of the point of view shot from the very onset set the stage for the rest of them film. It was definitely a risk to be taken, but it could not have been more effective. The use of that shot for about the first quarter of the film also causes the audience to feel incredibly connected to Jean-Do before we even see his face. In some sense, I felt like I was Jean-Do. As people spoke to him, such as when Celine first came to visit, their faces went in and out of frame, which gave a us a very realistic feel of Jean-Do's constraints. The framing also gave the feel as though people were looking at him like he were a caged animal. This gave me an even further sense that Jean-Do was truly trapped in his own body. This is a very frightening thought - one that I'm sure that Julian Schnabel and Janusz Kaminski wanted to convey to the audience.

I also really enjoyed the outdoor scenes, such as on the beach and in the boat. I can't think of a better setting to represent freedom and beauty. As Jean-Do sits motionless and alone in his wheelchair with the vast beach around him, we get an even better idea of how trapped he is. The wideness of the shot makes Jean-Do appear even smaller and helpless. It must have been particularly difficult for him to sit there unable to run across the sand with his children, especially after his imagination shows us that he dreams of surfing and rolling around in the sand with his love. The beach and the ocean are clearly near to his heart. That's probably why he often dictated his book near the beach.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly was a cinematographic masterpiece. I'm glad that Julian Schnabel was able to make a film that did Jean-Do's life justice, and a film that I will forever recommend for others to see!