The Intouchables

Driss (Omar Sy), an African immigrant and part-time hoodlum, inadvertently charms his way into an appointment as full-time care-giver in the chateau of a quadriplegic aristocrat named Philippe (veteran French star François Cluzet). Driss, impressed by the sumptuous creature comforts that are part of the job and prodded by Philippe’s testy defiance, rises to the challenges of his unexpected new responsibilities. And Philippe in turn begins to feel somewhat re-enlivened by the younger man’s frenetic and sometimes reckless ministrations to him. As such, The Intouchables is an amusing combination of odd couple/buddy buddy comedy with ostensibly therapeutic concerns in mind. Its apparent good intentions carry less weight than they might have in a tale less dependent on broad stereotypes. Still, the good-natured performances of the lead actors have a lot to do with whatever success this French blockbuster finds as entertainment in the U.S.. And Omar Sy, who won the French Cesar for best actor, is a particularly large and exceptional delight. Pageant Theatre. Rated R.