Intouchables (2011) was directed by the French directing/writing duo Olivier Nakache and Éric Toledano. They've collaborated on short films and feature-length films from 1995 and have not done any work apart. Even though it scored 47 on the IMDb Top 250, it only received 38 awards from 2011-2013 when it was nominated for a BAFTA in the Best Film Not in the English Language category. However, the main actors did win the award for Best Actor at the 2011 Tokyo International Film Festival. Intouchables was inspired by the true story of Philippe Pozzo di Borgo and his French-Moroccan caregiver Abdel Sellou. The writers used the documentary film À la vie, à la mort as a foundation for the story. They simultaneously utilized di Borgo's autobiography, A Second Wind: A Memoir.
The buddy duo Philippe and Driss were played by François Cluzet and Omar Sy, respectively. The movie also featured performances from Audrey Fleurot, Anne Le Ny, Clotilde Mollet, and Alba Gaïa Bellugi. While the film was mainly shot in Paris (France) and neighboring cities, the paragliding scene took place in Mont Bisanne, Villard-sur-Doron (France, near the Alps). The movie follows the story of Philippe, an aristocratic man who became a quadriplegic from a paragliding accident. He hires Driss, a young man from the projects, to be his caregiver. Intouchables is a comedy-drama movie falling in the buddy-duo subgenre. What does the film tell the audience about the importance of diverse friendships?
The film explores life in Paris and the clash of two different social classes. The rich, represented by Philippe, owner of a hotel chain, and the poor, represented by Driss, a young man from Senegal who lives in the poorest district of Paris. The two are entirely different: Philippe prefers Vivaldi, Chopin, and Schubert, Driss rocks out to Earth, Wind, and Fire. Nevertheless, the two grow incredibly close and become best friends. Driss brings smiles and a funky attitude to Philippe's otherwise slow, repetitive, and lonely life. On the other hand, Philippe unknowingly teaches Driss about life, art, and culture. He introduces him to new values, hobbies, and experiences. After visiting the art gallery, Driss is inspired to take up painting and becomes incredibly fond of it, a hobby that would not have existed without Philippe's influence.
Driss learns that Philippe is writing letters to Éléonore, who lives in Dunkirk (the North of France). Their epistolary relationship greatly confuses Driss, and he confronts Philippe, essentially forcing him to send a photo to this woman he's become infatuated with. Philippe is deathly scared to tell Éléonore the truth about himself: that he is a wheelchair user. Even when Éléonore asks him for a photo and Driss chooses a nice one, Philippe asks Yvonne to switch it out to one without his wheelchair in the frame. Driss helps Philippe become more open, empowering him to take greater strides towards developing their relationship. Even to the point where Driss calls Éléonore's number and forces Philippe to talk to her. Even at the film's end, Driss secretly arranges a date for Philippe and his epistolary (girl)friend, Éléonore.
After Driss' cousin comes looking for him, Philippe learns about Driss's life in the projects. He urges Driss to return to his family and take care of them. He relieves Driss of his duties. However, he quickly learns it is a terrible idea. The two are miserable without each other, Driss putting on a brave face and Philippe putting on a less-than-ideal depression beard. He hires a new caregiver who cares too much about Philippe's survival rather than his livelihood. Driss was the exact opposite. He barged into Philippe's life and acted like a man-child but didn't pity Philippe. Something that Philippe was craving. He just wanted to be treated as an average person, and Driss taught him how to do that.
On the other hand, Driss wanted and needed to learn to act polite and civil. For example, when Driss drove Philippe to the art gallery. He saw Philippe's neighbor block his entrance with a clear No Parking sign. Philippe reveals that he does it often, so Driss decides to teach him a lesson. Driss physically drags the neighbor out of his car and presses his face to the No Parking sign on Philipe's entrance, making him repeat what the sign says multiple times. Fast forward to the movie's end, and a different neighbor comes and parks in the spot. Instead of assaulting the driver, he politely asks him to move. Which, surprisingly, seemed to work.
Their values and approaches to life changed organically after meeting each other. It wasn't a forced change; otherwise, after Driss left, they would have reverted back to the way they were before they met. But because of their differences and mutual understanding, they could grow into better people. When Philippe is around Driss, he learns to appreciate his privileges; however, when Driss is around Philippe, he values his freedom and independence and becomes a culturally rounded individual. I watched this movie a bit before being taken out of cinemas, and I loved it then. It may seem like a stereotypical buddy movie, but it's more to that. While their friendship was planted because of a job, Driss ended up returning because of the genuine connection they made in their time together.
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