My main question in that scene was, "Why should I care?" Really, the film never persuaded me to invest in the ins and outs of Bauby's love life. There seemed to be an assumption that I would care, but I never felt that. I was much more interested in his interactions with Henriette and his father, and I was open to exploring his relationship with his children more (but that really didn't happen).
I thinking starting things off with that cheeky objectification ("Is this heaven?") might have undercut any interest I might have had in Bauby's romantic entaglements, past and present.
pixote