The diving bell and the butterfly was about a successful magazine editor who had a stroke and was left completely paralyzed. Unable to speak, he worked with speech therapists and developed a long, tiring way to communicate with others. After working with a patient translator, he was able to finish the book he had previously contracted to. The love of his life finally came to visit him and 10 days after publication he died.

The movie credits open with x-rays of bones which i found really interesting. It made me think the movie was about some kind of medical condition, which it obviously turned out to be but i never expected paralysis. In my opinion that was a really creative way to open a movie about someone who literally cant use his bones. Another decision by the director that i thought was brilliant was his decision to keep Jean-Do's face hidden for the first portion of the movie. The first time they showed his face in whole was when he was in his job. I like the fact that they showed him in his entirety for the first time the way he used to be because in my opinion it made me sympathize with him more. It also gave me an idea of how much he had change. I think if i had seen what he currently looked like, then saw what he used to look like i don't think the effect on me would have been what it was. When they did decide to show him they did it gradually. They showed the back of his head, his one eye, his hands, his feet and finally his whole face. This choice was also very effective to me. It left some mystery to him even though we already know what the outcome for the rest of his life was. The next thing i thought was completely brilliant was the shot of Jean-Do's father in the mirror with the picture of his son was incredible. It showed the huge amount of admiration he had for his son, which was a theme that was kept through the whole movie.