I Lost My Body: The Loneliest Severed Hand
Yes. This story is about a severed hand. No. It’s not gross. It’s actually quite sad and endearing, beautiful in the way that rainy days are. This French Animated film, I Lost my Body, focuses and follows the journey of a severed hand as it paves its way through finding its body and owner.
One of the most interesting aspects of this film is how it does not fit into any specific genre. It’s suspenseful enough to be a thriller. Romantic enough to be a love story. Even heart-wrenching enough to be a dramatic film. But, really it’s far too enigmatic to be any of those. The film follows two main narratives, the owner of the hand- Naoufel, and his severed hand.
The Boy
Noaufel is very troubled. His character follows the arch of most orphaned boys forced into a life of hardships due to the tragic death of his parents. He is a pizza delivery boy who fell in love with a girl after talking to her through an intercom.
The movie opens with him losing his hand, then the movie backtracks from there. This dynamic plot design was effective in building tension and audience curiosity. Overall, Noaufel while a very likable character was just-underwhelming and generally uninteresting.
The Hand
This would sound weird, but I liked the character of the hand so much more. All throughout the movie, I realized that I was rooting for the hand. More than I was actually rooting for Noaufel.
I think that the melancholic smallness and lostness of the hand as a bodyless limb made me feel for it. Anyone who would give, “I Lost my Body” a chance would find themselves more invested in the present adventures of the hand. More than the back story of Noaufel.
Why is it “I Lost my Body” and not I Lost my Hand?
After watching the film, I realized that the title was a key aspect of watching it. The title, “I Lost my Body” provides insight that this film is about “wholeness”. About our very human desire to be a part of a much greater whole. More than this, the film tells us how this is impossible. That as we go through life, we lost parts of ourselves- and sometimes being “not-whole” is a sign of growth- like losing baby teeth.
I Lost my Body made me relate to the aching loneliness of a severed hand because it reflected my loneliness so accurately that it was almost too painful to watch.
