I Lost My Body (2019) User Reviews

A great sad open-ended story

[stoneps · 8/10 · 15 December 2019]

A very sad story..

The world is not very kind to this young man. Parents died in a car crash. Adopted by a horrible family. Worked in a pizza restaurant and literally failing as a delivery guy.. Those childhood dreams are dreams after all. He didn't turn out to be an astronaut or musician, much less both.

And all of a sudden this cold world gave him a bit of warmth, a girl waiting for his delivery was concerned (for the first time) about whether he was okay after a minor car crash which caused the delay. A special moment.

It felt like a new meaning to his life. He started to follow this girl who works at the library and then became an apprentice for her uncle. He was finally able to get himself a place he can call home. And he even used the knowledge he learned from apprenticeship to please his girl. But when he open his heart to her she panicked and left. And he cut his hand off.

So this is where the animation begins with this side storyline where the loose hand tries to find his owner. Like his owner, the hand suffered from the rejections of this cold world as well. Took it great effort to finally got back to him.. but the owner, sadly, didn't want the reunion.

It had no choice but to see what happens to its owner as an independent object. It saw him listening the past memories over and over. And of course the moment when the car crash happened hurt him the most.. and he decided to replace it with something else.. a moment where he challenged himself and succeeded by taking a leap of faith! And when he did that, he left the recording machine behind, together with all his memories.

This story doesn't really have an ending. Did the boy and girl got back together? What happens to his loose hand? What happens to him after? There is really no answers given. I guess no matter what happens, it doesn't really matter.

This world is damn cold and unfair with prevalent rejections. I can really do nothing but hope that the boy finds his new (or old) meaning in his new life. I wish him well. If this world is cruel enough to kill him off with more hardships, I guess it doesn't deserve him in the first place, so be it, even I am tired of its sick jokes. If he's a happy chap now, perfection it is. Time to laugh it off, choking "life" by its neck and say "that all you can do?"

Now that I'm thinking about it. The beautiful sunset with which this animation ended with, probably is the reason why existing here, at this very moment, is such a beautiful thing. We get to experience all this fine views presented so delicately in front of our eyes, and all the other wonders stimulating our five senses every delightful moment. We can just take it. This nature that breeds all things, is so free of costs, arrangements, and efforts, and so regular, present, and stunning.

Perhaps it's not an open ending, perhaps we are supposed to realize we all are living the moment. The ending of it is just the start of something else.. It is an ongoing, nonstop process. This, is life.

Un-Hand-Drawn Animation

[Cineanalyst · 9/10 · 3 December 2019]

Arty French animation "I Lost My Body" contains some lovely imagery, and others have applauded it for its poetic dramatization, but I want to focus on its clever self-reflexive construction. The story involves a character whose hand is severed, whereupon the plot mostly assumes a dual focus of that character with his remaining body and of that of his disembodied limb, the latter of which assumes an independent agency and movement. There's also a girl, who plays an important role in one respect, but the hero's journey is predominantly concerned with the boy and the hand. The foundational obstacle for both the boy and hand is to overcome a past tragedy of separation: the death of the boy's parents and, in the other case, the loss of the hand's body. All of which is congruent with the picture's self-referential pulse of the disconnection of modern animated movies, such as this one, from traditional hand-drawn animated cinema.

This is more than a handy pun. Most of the primary elements of creating animation are included in the narrative. It has music--the boy's mother played the cello, and he and a blind man play the piano. The boy also collected audio on a cassette recorder (a device which also serves a critical function in the overcoming of the heroes' obstacles). Also notice the focus in the story on disembodied dialogue (e.g. the pizza delivery scene), which is what voice acting consists of, and on sound effects (e.g. the sound of wind from pressing one's hand to their ear). Besides the promise of a generic romantic coupling, the girl's role here also is in the writing department. She's a librarian and recommends to him a novel, "The World According to Garp," which itself is a piece of multi-layered, self-referential fiction about a writer and writing. Additionally, the boy borrows books about igloos from the library, which provides him with inspiration for his architectural designs. Thus, we have design (architectural and written), a soundtrack and a score. All that's left is to build the visuals of the animation. For that, he becomes a carpenter's apprentice--using, as his employer gives a helping hand, tools, accessories and instruments to transform the material, wood, which comes from the same stuff the paper animators used to draw films on did.

Note that only then does the hand's separate story begin, from an "accident" of carpentry. Film is a process of reanimation; in live action especially, but also, through inspiration or as reference, in animation as well, film captures something alive--something animated--then kills and makes it inanimate as still images before, finally, reanimating what was once captured as the projected (or Netflix streamed, as the case may be) motion picture that the spectator views. Likewise, the hand's individual adventure begins when he is captured by the electric saw; next, the hand lies dead before becoming reanimated as something entirely different from what it once was. In other words, the disembodied hand here is a metaphor for film and, specifically, animated film. It's the film-within-the-film, the hand's journey nested between the outer story of the boy's making of that story, along with the girl as being something of our on-screen surrogate spectator.

Unlike in live action, these drawn compositions don't necessitate a physical camera. This provides a free hand to the perspective of the picture, the theoretical camera's eye, which in turn becomes the spectator's shared vantage point, to be limited only by the filmmakers' imagination. The handling of that camera here is where "I Lost My Body" most excels visually in my estimation. In addition to alternating between color and black-and-white palettes and 2D and 3D computer animation, there's some shifting in perspectives. We and the camera are sometimes like a fly--oblivious, perhaps, to the characters when we're at a distance on a wall, but a nuisance when we swoop in or rest too close upon them. Other times, we share the point of view of this or that character--both what they see in the outside world and, through memories and fantasies, what they imagine with their mind's eye. At one point, we're just a disembodied eyeball resting on a floor. We may even be a reflection in a subway mirror as we witness a hand hiding under a ravioli can scurrying by. (By the way, does anyone else sense a dig at Pixar--specifically "Ratatouille" (2007) with this sequence involving rats, but with other scenes, too, such as floating through the wind (albeit it with an umbrella instead of balloons) between cars, and I can't think of any better reason for the astronaut business here. It would be fitting since, after all, Pixar largely killed traditional animation.)

Even better here is the attempt, which seems specifically more suited to animation because of how it's made, to expand the sensory stimuli by adding texture and a motif of the hand feeling the physical world around it. We experience movies, to paraphrase Charlie Chaplin, as movement, two planes and a suggestion of depth; it's something we've always seen and, later, also heard. Of course, we also feel emotionally and physically in response to the audio-visual experience. Thus, sure, "I Lost My Body" is touching, but, moreover, its tactile focus, hand-in-hand with its self-reflexive framework, almost gives the impression that it's a movie we can feel, to reach out and touch back.

Fooling the destiny

[isotalosv · 9/10 · 27 January 2020]

The most crucial point of the movie is whether we are free or not. Whether the world is deterministic, that is, everything being the necessary outcome of previous events. If this would be the case, then things would be as they are, necessarily, and we, as human beings, would have absolutely no control of our actions. That would mean that free will would not exist, it would be a mere illusion. However, as Naoufel tells Gabriel on the roof, he believes that it is actually possible to fool destiny and break through from the deterministic fate. This is what the jumping into the crane is all about -deviating and doing something completely irrelevant, something that even destiny could not have guessed, catching it by surprise.

The fly is of crucial importance. The movie continuously gets back to it and in the very beginning we hear Naoufel's father teaching his son how one should catch it. It is done by trying get it where it will be, not where it is, that is, one should aim next to it, never where it currently is. This is so, because it is always going to be faster and by the time one reaches to it, it will already be gone. One should instead try to take it by suprise. Even though it sees everything with it's giant eyes, it will not, however, see one aiming it to the side. It is clear that the fly symbolizes destiny. With both, the fly and destiny, one must try to fool it and catch it by surprise. However, even with this trick in mind, catching it will be extremely difficult, just as Naoufel learns when trying to apply his father's advice for catching it. He fails to catch it and when he wonders why this is so, his father replies that you can't always win, ç'est la vie! This is important -no matter how exquisite strategies we have for our lives, there is always the possibility that destiny is going to draw the longest straw and fool us instead.

Now when finally we are shown how Naoufel lost his hand, it is important to see that this is the moment when he finally catches the fly, or so he thinks, because after the incident, the fly crawls from the cutoff hand, unharmed. Also, it is crucial to see, that it is his father's watch which eventually causes the accident -it gets stuck into the table saw, thus resulting to cutting off Naoufel's hand. By keeping the watch in his hand, Naoufel refuses to let go of his parents and dwells in his past. This is of course nothing but reasonable for a boy who has lost his parents at a very young age. However, when catching the fly, that is, fooling destiny, it is impossible to do so without letting go of the past as well. By letting go of the past, one might feel as if something would have been cut off, as if something would have been lost -like a hand for instance. When jumping into the unknown, taking the leap of faith, one must, in a certain sense, stop dwelling in the past, and instead focus completely to the jump ahead. This however might be painful as it is symbolized in the movie by the cutting off of the hand. You can't fool destiny without a price, and this price is that you lose something of yourself in the process. Now it is also very interesting that the hand is trying to reunite with Naoufel. It is certainly the case that the stuff we are trying to left behind us, are constantly trying to follow us. However, Naoufel has made his choice not to dwell in the past no more, and thus he refuses to reunite with his hand even in his sleep. The old Naoufel has died in order for the new one to be born. There is no going back. Everything leads to the final and the most gallant leap of faith, that is, jumpin into the crane, the ultimate fooling of destiny. In this he succeeds and it will bring in him a feeling sort of awe, an order in the mix of chaos, in the mix of the drunken world around him.

The most interesting thing in fooling the destiny is that if the destiny itself is caught off guard and taken by surprise because it didn't see the leap of faith coming and thus doesn't know where the individual that took leap will end up, then neither does the individual himself. The leap of faith is not taken because of some rational evidence, instead, in is taken as an ultimate act on love. Doing something for love requires faith, and faith cannot always be justified by rational accounts -sometimes one just has to jump into the crane, that is, take a leap of faith into the unknown. That means taking the ultimate risk, because one does not know what is waiting ahead. In this sense it comes very close to Kierkegaard's conception of leap of faith. He thought that this sort of ultimate commitment, taking the ultimate leap of faith out of love, is what everyone should strive at. Even though one might have doubts before doing such a thing, it is faith in the end which conquers the doubt. And faith strong as this is what makes life worth living, not some rational judgements.

So it is not the case that when one manages to fool destiny, it would mean that one would take things in his control. On the contrary, by breaking from the chain of deterministic causality, one doesn't have a clue what will happen next. All he knows is that he has managed to fool destiny and now he must try to stay ahead of it, and not let it catch him up. This is important. There does not exist any rules one could apply to different situations in life, rules one could be certain they would bring the desired outcome no matter what. Life is like a powerful stream impossible to control. We might develope some strategies such that by using them, we could hope to attain some benefit, but there is always the possibility that the train of life will pass the station leaving us bewildered looking at the rear lights of it, because we didn't make it aboard on time. Therefore it is a big illusion to think that one could take life in control - this is impossible. Even though one manages to fool destiny, it does not mean that one would be in control of things. On the contrary, by fooling destiny, one finds himself in the most darkest place, a place where even destiny can't reach, and this has to be the most terrifying experience. Therefore, the only way one manages to survive in this sort of situation is by having the most vigorous kind of faith.

"I lost my body" is all about losses in life that many of us go through, and hope

[the_donnie · 10/10 · 30 November 2019]

A simple animation and yet so poetic and melancholic. It's slow and cozy to watch, it unexpectedly got my feelings carried away through the story of this young boy finding his reasons to continue living. "I lost my body" is all about losses in life that many of us go through, and the uniquevocual reason we continue to live is hope to find that part of us that's missing, such as love. A very few movies out there have the capacity to touch hearts these days, this is one of them.

WTF??!!

[ryanfordogs · 10/10 · 11 November 2019]

A masterpiece out of left field. Rich, layered, lean...devastating

Mesmerising animation let down by ending

[MuckyMuckMan73 · 7/10 · 9 December 2019]

I Lost My Body is a captivating watch thanks mainly to the incredibly textured animation, but unfortunately I felt a little let down by the narrative which just seemed to go nowhere with no obvious resolution. Told through present day and two different periods of flash back we follow the hand of Naoufel which is desperate to reconnect with its owner after an accident. Prior to his accident we are drip fed information that Naoufel has had a tumultuous upbringing losing his parents in a car accident, growing up with an unloving foster parent whilst working unsuccessfully as a pizza delivery man instead of his early ambition to be a pianist or astronaut. It resonates for sure (I wanted to be a pilot or illustrator growing up, neither fulfilled like Naoufel). But after a failed pizza delivery his focus is given clarity in the form of Gabrielle. All the narrative jumps back and forth to weave the narrative together but its in the final act when the timelines converge that unfortunately Director Jérémy Clapin gave me no satisfying closure. I don't mind ambiguity in a film but this just seemed to peeter out without resolution. Undeniably the animation is mesmerising. Every frame is wonderfully drawn with texture on every surface, unlike many animated films which solely rely on one layer of shading to give form to a 2D image. The movement of the hand is also superb giving it a personality of its own as it goes on an urban assault course, avoiding both human and animal peril in order to find it's host. The music by Dan Levy is also brilliant and almost hypnotic adding atmosphere to the proceedings. Although not a perfect film I Lost My Body is a beautifully crafted animated film that might be more rewarding on repeat viewings but initially is somewhat of a disappointment due to it's ending.

Stunning

[ThomasDrufke · 9/10 · 20 February 2020]

I typically take a lot of notes while watching movies at home as it helps jog my memory if I wait a few weeks before I put out a "review" of the film. With I Lost My Body, I found myself completely entranced in the film and stopped looking down at my notebook after 15-20 minutes. Beautifully animated and a wonderfully strung together story, this is one of the best animated films of the last 10 years. One of the few absolute wins coming from original Netflix films. And that score by Dan Levy....that score!

9.4/10

I Lost My Body

[jboothmillard · 7/10 · 10 February 2020]

I found this French animation on Netflix after I found out it was nominated the Academy Awards, it sounded like a very bizarre, but also fascinating idea for a story. Basically, in a laboratory in Paris, a severed hand comes to life and escapes. The hand begins a harrowing journey across the city, to find its way back to its body, belonging to a young man, seen in flashbacks. Naoufel (Dev Patel) had aspirations to become a pianist or an astronaut, but after both of his parents were killed in a car accident, he is forced to live with his emotionally distant uncle and his crude cousin. Naoufel tries to get by as a pizza deliveryman, but he is constantly criticised by his boss (Dennis Kleinman) for being late. During one delivery, Naoufel delivers a late pizza to a young woman, Gabrielle (Alia Shawkat), at her apartment. Though they never see each other, as Naoufel cannot get through the lobby's security door, they have a long conversation, and Naoufel quickly becomes infatuated with her. Naoufel tracks Gabrielle down, finding her working at the library where she works, but he is too nervous to introduce himself. When she leaves, he follows her dropping off medicine to a carpenter, Gigi (George Wendt). After being noticed, Naoufel notices an advert for an apprentice, and pretends to have come to take up the position. The terminally ill Gigi is at first reluctant to take on an apprentice but accepts after he learns that Naoufel is an orphan. Naoufel moves out of his uncle's house and into an attic apartment provided by Gigi. He spends time learning the trade and getting closer to Gabrielle, but he keeps his identity as a pizza deliveryman a secret. In the present day, the severed hand continues its journey, evading an aggressive pigeon, a blind man (Mark Lewis) and his aggressive dog and a baby in its crib. During one conversation at the library, Naoufel checks out a book about the Arctic. Gabrielle remarks her love for polar bears but that it is impossible to ever go to a place like Antarctica. Naoufel begins to build a wood igloo on one of the roof tops he can access from the attic apartment. Naoufel is unhappy when he returns home to find his cousin there talking to Gabrielle. She had been invited to a party that evening with him, but she says they can skip the party. Naoufel takes her to the roof tops and asks Gabrielle if she believes in fate. When she questions him further, he argues that you can change your fate by doing something unconventional, such as leaping off the ledge onto the crane that is a few feet away from them. Afterwards, he shows her the igloo he built. Naoufel and Gabrielle talk some more, and Naoufel says that he ordered a pizza. In the igloo, Naoufel reveals himself as the pizza deliveryman to Gabrielle. She is upset and misinterprets his intentions and rejects him, leaving him hurt and angry. The next morning, Naoufel returns to work hungover from going to the party alone and getting drunk and sporting a black eye. In the middle of working, cutting wood on a jigsaw, Naoufel is distracted by a fly. He recalls his father's lessons on catching a fly, and at this moment he gets his watch caught in the jigsaw, which pulls in his hand and severs it. Eventually, the severed hand reaches Naoufel while he is asleep, but it is unable to reattach itself to his arm. Naoufel, depressed and hopeless, revisits his old tape recorder, which still has recordings of his parents, including the car ride before the accident. Naoufel doesn't respond to Gigi when he tries to talk to him. Gabrielle comes to see him and finds he has left. After searching the empty igloo, Gabrielle finds Naoufel's old, abandoned tape recorder. She discovers a new recording on it. Listening, she worries that he may have committed suicide, and instead learns he had successfully leaped off the ledge onto the crane as he pondered. Naoufel lies in the crane and begins smiling to himself as he looks out at the city. His severed hand retreats into the snow. The fates of Gabrielle, Naoufel and his severed hand are not revealed. Also starring Tucker Chandler as Young Naoufel, Sarah Lynn Dawson as The Mother, Anouar H. Smaine as The Father and Tara Sands as Baby's Mother. The dubbing cast are all good, the adventures of a disembodied hand is strange but actually equally compelling, the love story is sweet, and the themes of emotional loss, need for connection and self-discovery are profound, with a great impeccable animation style, and a touching score by Dan Levy, an interesting alternative animated drama. It was nominated the Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film. Very good!

This really is a work of art.

[MOscarbradley · 9/10 · 16 December 2019]

A severed hand goes in search of the rest of its body in this beautiful and hugely imaginative animated feature from French director Jeremy Clapin while elsewhere, in what appears to be a parallel story, a boy grows up and goes in search of love and his place in the world. "I Lost my Body" is the kind of animated film that really does qualify as a work of art, (the imagery throughout is gorgeous), though the subject matter probably disqualifies it as being suitable for children, (never mind the occasional sexual reference; the basic concept itself is pretty alarming). The version I saw was the dubbed 'American' print but since the dialogue is always highly intelligent purists have nothing to worry about. If there is any justice this should win the Best Animated Feature Oscar that almost certainly will go to "Frozen II".

Give them a hand.

[Pjtaylor-96-138044 · 7/10 · 3 March 2020]

'I Lost My Body (2018)' is an unconventional experience, more of a poem than a traditional film. It mixes the surreal with the mundane; intertwines the past with the present. Somehow, its disparate elements come together to form one complete whole. It's surprisingly nuanced, as successful in its relationship drama as in its five-fingered antics. It's strangely satisfying, too. Its wonderful animation, realist aesthetic and almost ethereal main theme all add up to an experience that's as bizarre as it is beautiful. It's difficult to explain how but the piece undeniably finds a real sense of poignancy. It's remarkable, really. Of course, its 'arty' nature is likely to put off a good chunk of its audience; it isn't as straightforward as its premise would suggest, after all. Yet, the flick is all the better for it. It's genuinely affecting in a subtle but significant way. It's pretty great, even if it isn't always massively entertaining. 7/10

A masterpiece

[rasul1976 · 9/10 · 2 December 2019]

Absolutely stunning, beautiful and captivating. Loved everything about it because it's different. Also beautiful music!

MAMI MFF Review: I Lost My Body (7 Stars)

[nairtejas · 7/10 · 22 October 2019]

The surreal nature of I Lost My Body where a mysterious severed hand travels on its own to assumedly find its owner blends with the sweet little romantic comedy to make you smile. It is delightful to watch but even more delightful to take in the nonstop score and soundtrack (the hip hop songs are the shiz) that just fits well to the story of Naoufel, a teenage confused with life and who falls in love with a girl after speaking to her for five minutes through an intercom. The romance is pure and so is the charming overall quality of this French pie that just melts in your mouth as you relish it. The comedy, the romance, the surrealism, and the sheer storyline will make you think about I Lost My Body for days after you have left the hall. Watch it for the cunningness of the hand or the innocence of the chemistry between the the lovers. TN.

(Watched and reviewed at its India premiere at the 21st MAMI Mumbai Film Festival.)

It's a bold and definitively original way of telling a story, but the story itself is less remarkable

[andrewroy-04316 · 5/10 · 17 January 2020]

I Lost My Body definitely gets points for creativity and stylistic choice, but it's also a slow-moving film with an unclear destination. The alternation between Nauvel and the hand was certainly an interesting choice, and it is fun to see the hand travel around Paris. We spend the entire film going through flashbacks to understand some very simple events. The fact that there's literally no substance to their romance, just him talking to her a couple times and falling in love and following her, precluded much investment in the plot line. The ending is clearly hearkening back to Nauvel's earlier line about cheating fate, but rings hollow - he wanted to do something and unpredictable to cheat fate just for the sake of it, with no real goal in mind? It's not a bad story, and the reveal of what happened to the hand and his parents was well set up by the story, but it drags so much getting there that the payoff feels insufficient. It is bold and artistic, but there really wasn't anything to latch onto in this film.

Best film of the year

[heurteln · 9/10 · 10 November 2019]

I like originals movies, with ideas and good mastery of technicals aspects and real knowledge about cinema. This movie is all of that. Yes, it's a small budget and animation is not the best skill of the movie, but this lack of money is more than compensated by beautiful scenery and the poetry that emerges.

Hauntingly mesmerizing and dreamy yet nightmarish!

[ameyvitian7 · 8/10 · 5 December 2019]

Though, there are too many interpretations to this one - What it forced me to believe and somewhere poked a thought in me was - "What you seek is seeking you" - Somewhere, it's about a dream - A dream that's seeking you - While you're sitting back, afraid of taking that leap into the unknown - A leap of faith, a jump that's completely unpredictable and irrational - But sometimes, you take that leap and therefore you reach an unknown place with unknown challenges which bring unknown rewards to you - Just run into it blindly and keep your fingers crossed.

The Luckless Naoufel...

[Xstal · 6/10 · 22 May 2020]

... loses his parents in a car crash, grows up in a loveless family, loses his job, can't get the girl he falls for and then cuts off his right hand, while being pursued by a zombie hand. It was fate all along or was it, I think not! As depressing an animation as you could wish for, struggles to portray loss as anything other than bad luck and incompetence.

An absolute delight

[darren-153-890810 · 8/10 · 12 October 2019]

Saw this at LFF with absolutely no idea what to expect. I was completely blown away by how beautiful, heart felt and emotional it was.

If any film can make you hold back the tears in my eyes is a winner. Let alone an animated one.

Beautiful. Hope this gets a cinematic release

Nice Visuals but Disjointed Storytelling

[jadepietro · 6/10 · 22 December 2019]

GRADE: C+

THIS FILM IS MILDLY RECOMMENDED.

IN BRIEF: All of the strong visuals cannot put this film back together.

JIM'S REVIEW: I Lost My Body is a strange little French animated film that has been getting some accolades from many critic circles and film festivals. The film is a tad macabre as it tells the tale of a severed hand in search of its original owner. Yes, I did say strange.

The owner is Naoufel, a pizza delivery man, who meets a young librarian named Gabrielle. Their love story is slim, but it is how hand meets man that is the main gist of the story. The narrative is, literally, disjointed as both story threads converge, one more interesting than the other. While the abrupt conclusion left me a little disappointed, this reviewer was more than satisfied with its artistic merit.

The filmmaker, Jérémy Clapin, has some nice visuals with his skewed perspective and subdued color palette. His varied backgrounds and focus of object details is uniquely rendered. However, the film's characters tend to resemble the artwork of figurative painter Alex Katz, but as animated characters go, they lack the emotional clout to carry a film. Their flatness makes them emotionless figures, too remote to register any life.

Still, the story continually intrigues as we wonder how Naoufel and his extremity parted ways. Even if the hand sequences are far more engaging than its human love story, I Lost My Body is always a worthwhile and artistic journey.

Each of us lost his body

[alekspredator87 · 8/10 · 27 July 2022]

Intending to watch the cartoon "I lost my body", I didn't really count on anything. Not a bad rating and reviews for the work, but it was the Oscar nomination in the Best Animated Film category that interested me.

From the very first minutes, the picture attracts the viewer's attention with an unusual and peculiar drawing, which, as a rule, is characteristic of author's projects. The work of director Jeremy Klapen is immediately interesting due to the unusual presentation of the material, the initially incomprehensible concept of a severed hand that wanders through a predatory city, and the undoubtedly attractive soundtrack.

The material is fed through flashbacks of the main character Noufel, scenes of his current life and with the help of a separate story arc of the hand, so to speak. The further the creators move us through the story of a young man, the more the sad world of this young man opens up to us. The director skillfully pulls the viewer by these and other nerves, allowing him to plunge into the guy's world and identify himself with him. Watching the sad story of Noufel, who was once full of enthusiasm and dreamed of a lot: a bright future with his parents, a wonderful career, just a happy life. However, children's dreams can be naive, and fate disposes so that much is not destined to come true. So it became with Noufel. A young man lives a gray life, he is alone in this huge city, which in fact may well be predatory and dangerous. Sometimes it seems that he does not have a specific goal, he has already got used to his fate and is now simply trying to survive by working as a pizza deliveryman. His dreams of becoming an astronaut or a musician are now only in his memories, which are inextricably linked with his long-gone parents.

However, everything suddenly changes when Noufel literally falls in love with a girl, or rather with her voice, when the couple communicates over the intercom on a rainy evening. And then something flares up in the guy. He tries to rekindle the flame of life in himself, suddenly realizing that he is not able to be alone in this vast world.

Another storyline is a metaphorical journey of a severed hand in search of a lost body. At first, you don't even understand what kind of brush it is, and where it is in a hurry. But, believe me, closer to the final you will definitely understand. Everyone, I think, will draw their own conclusion, both about the lonely wandering hand and about the picture as a whole.

The severed brush, as I saw it, is all of us, every single person who somehow lost something important from childhood, the ability to see the world with children's eyes, the desire to comprehend new things and the feeling that everything is possible in this world. At some point, when you are already becoming an adult, you suddenly realize that there are a lot of difficulties, prohibitions, locks that are created by society and/or by yourself. In the cartoon, as I saw it, for Noufel, the starting point of no return was the departure of his parents, who did not allow him to recover and become what he so dreamed of. He had no support, he stopped striving himself. For the audience, it can be a lot of those points that everyone will think about independently and be sure to grieve on this topic, realizing how long ago the time when he was really free has passed.

Emotions from this picture are very difficult to convey in words, and to do it in such a way as to really interest a potential viewer, but believe me, you will be able to immerse yourself in this interesting deeply personal story. There is nothing masterpiece here, the plot is quite simple, but the general concept of the work closer to the finale will allow the cartoon to unfold in a way that the highest-quality dramas sometimes do not. Maybe this is just my perception of the picture, but viewing this work will definitely not be superfluous.

The music in the movie is just gorgeous. I want to listen to it again, it allows me to remind both about the work itself and about the warm inner feeling of sadness that I experienced when watching the cartoon. Jeremy Klapen's work earned a nomination for a prestigious award, but even more it taught me personally to see my life through the prism of the flow of time, bringing together everything that once happened to us. After all, this skill makes it clear how to make your life happier when you see the life of the main character of the picture. Each of us should learn to be at least a little happier than we are today. And such works help to find the way to this happiness in our difficult times.

8 out of 10.

I tried.. I just don't like it

[Golightly678 · 6/10 · 30 September 2020]

The animation and direction look great. A style I enjoy in both. The story though... I thought when they did the flashback of the guy that it would finally shape up... Nope. I stopped twice.

I thoroughly enjoy animation. My fav form of movie. I go into it looking for the things in everything I watch:

• animation style
• story development
• direction

Even kids films have these qualities. Its not about this being 'mature' film making, I also thoroughly enjoy most art films that others find boring and slow. (If that's to be called mature so be it.)

It's that the story seemed.. hollow. That's why his flashback was my tipping point. That fb wasn't hollow. That was good. The rest... When he begins his quest, just not enjoyable. I'm not trying a third time.

Visual Poetry

[hannahbrigittanieswand · 10/10 · 30 November 2019]

This movie is style and substance. An incredibly touching and poetic story, told in a quiet, observant tone. I cannot wait to see it again!

I Lost My Body - Exploration, Loss and Discovery

[mediamonologue · 7/10 · 6 August 2020]

I Lost My Body (J'ai perdu mon corps) is an excellent 2019 animated film from director Jérémy Clapin which tells a tale of how loss can lead to personal growth and forgiveness.

Reader, please note that this review contains spoilers for the film. You have been warned!

Naoufel's story is told from two perspectives; one in flashbacks, retelling his past, and another from his present. However, what makes I Lost My Body a truly unique viewing experience is that the present storyline is told from the perspective of Naoufel's severed hand.

The film focuses heavily on the theme of loss. Whether this is physical, in the case of Naoufel's hand, or emotional through the loss of his parents, this film expertly shows how someone can lose that which is valuable to them but still grow and become a better person.

Naoufel (Dev Patel) is at a low-point when we meet him. He works in a dead-end pizza delivery job and lives with his emotionally disconnected uncle and crass cousin. However, a fateful meeting over intercom with Gabrielle (Alia Shawkat) changes his life for the better, eventually.

Naoufel very quickly becomes infatuated with Gabrielle, and tracks down her place of work in a pretty stalker-like manner; but I understand that romance often trumps creepiness in cinema, so let's move on.

He eventually follows her to Gigi's (George Wendt) workshop but is caught out by Gabrielle who asks what he is doing there. Naoufel is able to use a nearby apprenticeship advert to explain away his presence.

Despite this apparent last-minute save, he realises that he really does want this opportunity to achieve drive and focus in not just his work, but his life as well.

Gigi's initial reluctance to accept him disappears once he realises that Naoufel is an orphan. This suggests that Gabrielle may have lost her parents too, causing her to be closer with her uncle. It's a small detail in the film, but one that shows someone who has experienced loss helping someone he can sympathise with.

Naoufel's toxic home environment is revealed when he tells his uncle that he is leaving and moving into the apartment provided by the apprenticeship. He is visibly nervous, even scared, to speak to a man who we barely see move. Thankfully, Naoufel makes his escape and begins to work and learn with Gigi in the workshop.

Whilst this storyline is playing out, we are greeted with the beautifully animated 'hand scenes'. The low-down perspective granted by the hand leads to brilliant visual storytelling and a few nail-biting scenes as it traverses across the Parisian landscape.

The best scene (of many) is the stand-off with a pack of rats in the subway station. The hand quickly becomes overwhelmed by rats who see it as their next meal, showing how vulnerable it is.

However, the hand uses a cigarette lighter to fend off the pack. This enables the hand to make its escape on the back of a passing train, after which I audibly breathed a sigh of relief.

There are so many brilliant scenes where the hand makes its way around Paris, desperately searching for Naoufel to reattach itself to; strongly playing into the central theme of loss. The hand is practically running across Paris shouting "I Lost My Body!", and it offers an excellent change of pace from the dialogue-heavy past storyline.

As Naoufel works in with Gigi he becomes closer with Gabrielle. The two of them share a conversation about living in the North Pole, and Naoufel, using his newly gained woodworking skills, constructs the two of them a wooden igloo atop an abandoned skyscraper.

It's a wonderful scene which is sadly cut short when Naoufel reveals who he is by re-delivering the pizza that caused him and Gabrielle to cross paths. Naturally, she is furious and storms off leaving Naoufel in an igloo cold with emotion instead of ice and snow.

Naoufel's decision to tell Gabrielle this way is not the most thought-out plan, and her response is more than reasonable.

Naoufel appears to have an issue with processing loss, and tries to escape his worries by attending a party hosted by his cousin. He drinks excessively to forget the pain, but after starting a fight with a partygoer he is kicked out.

We now find ourselves where a hungover Naoufel chases a fly and ultimately loses his hand to a running bandsaw. It's a toe (and finger) curling scene that brings the story full-circle.

I honestly did not expect Naoufel to survive this ordeal during my first viewing, believing that this film was more of a tragedy than one of hope. Fortunately, Gigi finds him and takes him to hospital which saves his life.

Naoufel has now experienced physical and emotional loss, so retreats into himself and to his room. During this time his hand finally makes it home. However, when it tries to reattach itself, Naoufel turns away, leaving it separated from him, showing that he is trying to move away from his painful past.

Gabrielle eventually visits Naoufel, but finds his room empty so makes her way to the wooden igloo which is now covered in a layer of snow. On the roof she finds an audio recorder Naoufel used a kid.

The recorder symbolically represents Naoufel's shame, regret and inability to move on from the past. As a child he had used it record the sounds around him, but accidentally caused the crash which took the lives of his parents by pointing out the window.

He listened to this harrowing audio earlier in the film; but he now makes the decision to record over it, forgiving himself and moving on.

I love that he wipes away the pain he has carried with him for so many years. What made it especially impactful was that he immediately made the perilous jump across to the crane. He pushes himself to change his destiny, alter fate and chart his own course in life - no longer tied down by his past.

I am happy to say that I Lost My Body has seen a great deal of recognition. It received a nomination at the Academy Awards for Best Animated Picture, and saw victory at several other awards nights.

I was also surprised to find out that this film is actually based off a book; Happy Hand (Cadre Rouge) by Guillaume Laurant. I might look for an English-translated edition to see how it measures up.

This is a truly unique film that uses the outlandish tale of a severed hand travelling across Paris to illustrate that through loss we can all grow, move on and improve as people.

I didn't lose something or win for an hour and a half

[delidimoudisp · 5/10 · 15 December 2019]

The music is better than the film.don't get me wrong,but it's not a breathrough in filmgraphy.it's just an average movie.for the hour and a half...i don't feel that i lose something of win something

My heart cried. Absolutely a new favorite!

[me_is_we · 9/10 · 3 December 2019]

The first 11,5 minutes of the film were absolutely thrilling! Excitement, fear, sadness, heartache. It is unbelievable!

This film is stunning! The theme song really adds the element of pain.

My absolute favorite scene is where Naoufel finds himself LOST at his parent's burial. I broke down in tears. This scene is unequivocally the strongest scene in this film. It caused a flashback to my own childhood trauma's.

Also, this is the first film ever that I immediately watched again. That's a scoop for me, and what does that say about this film? EVERYTHING!

A Fantastic Journey from Start to Finish

[kjproulx · 10/10 · 5 December 2019]

It's not very often that foreign films are able to break out worldwide, as they have certain restrictions, but it's always nice when platforms like Netflix make it easier to do so. I Lost My Body is one of Netflix's latest releases and not only is it a fantastic French animated film, but simply one of my favourite films of 2019. A unique premise can go a long way when it sticks the landing on everything it promises and I believe this movie does exactly that. At a breezy 81 minutes, this film is not one to miss, if you're a fan of a good story, regardless of the medium or style.

Following a severed hand, as it ventures out to find its body, the audience is treated with many flashbacks to when the body was whole. From losing his job to falling in love, this movie takes you on a grand journey. The fact that the movie follows a severed hand as the focal point may turn some viewers away, but I assure you that there is much more under the surface. The constant flashbacks create a lot of backstory for the core character and I found myself really caring about this hand by the end. Sometimes the best stories are told in unordinary ways, but they shouldn't be ignored for that.

From the score to the dialogue (or lack thereof) in each and every scene, this movie felt like a calm journey, with a bit of tenseness throughout. I was even on the edge of my seat and tearing up at times. This premise his me really hard and I wasn't expecting it to, which is probably why I feel the need to praise it. I think the biggest compliment I can give this film is its screenplay though, which is written by Jérémy Clapin and Guillaume Laurant. Laurant is best known for his work on Amelie, which I didn't even know prior to watching this, but it's very clear that award-worthy writers worked on this.

In the end, I Lost My Body is a unique premise that exceeds all of its promises by the end. With incredibly engaging flashbacks throughout the entire duration and dialogue that brought tears to my eyes, this is a wonderful movie all around. For those who can take in weird elements in exchange for a fantastic story, I can't recommend this movie enough. Not everyone will be able to latch onto a movie like this, but for myself, it's one of the best stories I've seen all year. I Lost My Body is a fantastic film.