5/5 stars

Who knew the French were good at comedy? Based on a true story of the relationship that develops between a wealthy quadriplegic and his ghetto-based live-in carer, you may think that it’s a very British comedy as it deals with the theme of class. But though the two main characters are polar opposites, this comedy breaks that glass barrier.

Driss, the carer, becomes interested in art, opera and even takes up painting, while Philippe, the quadriplegic, listens to new music and changes his relationship with his spoilt daughter, becoming stricter with her. Driss also encourages him to meet up with a Dunkirk-based woman with whom Philippe has only an epistolary relationship.

The jokes are really a secondary element to the film, though they are still good. They are politically incorrect, as they usually relate to Philippe’s disability, but are not insipid and tasteless. A shaving scene near the end of the film is definitely worth waiting for.

This film has beaten the record for the highest-grossing movie in a language other than English beating the Japanese film, Spirited Away. And I can certainly see why. It is quite simply one of the most spirit-lifting movies I have ever seen. You realise watching it that though the two main characters are imprisoned by their circumstances, one physical, the other spiritual, they are men of great heart who can become friends no matter what their backgrounds. As the film progresses, each learns so much about life from the other. And by the end, you love them, not because they are benign, but because you wouldn’t expect them to be benign towards each other.

Harry Wise