This half term’s Cinéfilles session on the film adaptation of the autobiography, Le Scaphandre et le Papillon (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly), made for some thought-provoking discussion.

Despite the interesting editing techniques and subject matter, the film did not really provide us with a likeable central character. Jean-Dominique Bauby, former editor of the French magazine, Elle, showed huge courage and perseverance by writing his memoirs by blinking his way through the alphabet after suffering a massive stroke, which left him with a fully active mind in a paralysed body (locked-in syndrome).

We agreed that cinema can play an important role in raising awareness about rare conditions such as this.