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May 26, 2012 By John Everhart Issue #41 - Yeasayer

One of the highest grossing French films of all time, The Intouchables is a broad-stroked portrait of the development of an unlikely friendship between the aristocratic paraplegic Philippe (François Cluzet) and his reluctant Senegalese caregiver Driss (Omar Sy).

The film has a lazy propensity to rely on staid tropes, the chief offender being the “minority man on the dole doing right” cliché embraced as the socially uncouth firebrand Driss overcomes long odds during his ascendance into a trustworthy caregiver for the stuffy Philippe. The pair share life lessons.

You can surely fill in some narrative gaps prior to seeing the film without any spoilers proffered here: it is highly formulaic, with a notable antecedent in Driving Miss Daisy. Fortunately, there’s a playful adventurousness imbuing the script, and directors Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano coax impressive performances from theiractors. The most notable of these is Sy, who sets the screen on fire with his dynamic, nuanced portrayal of Driss.

The Intouchables isn’t a brilliant film, but it is a good, well-executed popcorn flick. It makes you fleetingly consider a few sociopolitical issues, but they’re unfortunately parsed in a ham-fisted manner. Ultimately, the movie makes you feel good, and is a reaffirmation of the magic conjured by suspending disbelief in a dark room for nearly two hours.

(www.weinsteinco.com/sites/the-intouchables)

Author rating: 6/10