For reasons that science can't seem to explain, French flick The Intouchables is ranked at 39 in the IMDb Top 250. Just to put that in perspective: both Woody Allen's Manhattan and Sofia Coppola's Lost In Translation (both worthy of the highest acclaim) are entirely absent from the list, and this... this very ordinary dramatic "comedy" film itself praised to the point of a Top 50 entry? There must be a mistake! Inspired by the true story of Philippe Pozzo di Borgo and his French-Algerian caregiver Abdel Sellou, The Intouchables is one of those films that automatically draws audiences because it is inherently "nice": it is, after all, the story of a poor black man looking after a rich, disabled white man, and is therefore ripe for attention and awards and such. But The Intouchables isn't even a particularly good movie of the nice kind; it's light and fluffy to the point of irritation, offering little substance or actual drama in favour of cutesy moments and an almost fantastical approach to the source material. It might seem life-affirming, but it's actually kind of sinister.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
