A wealthy French quadriplegic hires an untested young man from the banlieues, the poor suburbs, as his caretaker. An unlikely friendship forms across every social barrier. The film is about how healing it is to be treated as a person, with your condition left out of it.
The Intouchables is a 2011 biography, comedy and drama film directed by Olivier Nakache, Eric Toledano. This breakdown covers 4 techniques (2 narrative, 1 cinematography and 1 sound), each with the scene where you can see it. If you like how it is made, Seven Samurai uses several of the same techniques.
Pairing characters from opposite social worlds who find each other strange. Their friction produces the comedy, and what they learn from each other produces the emotion.
How this film uses it
Philippe and Driss come from opposite ends of French society. One comes from inherited wealth and classical culture, the other from the housing projects and hip-hop. The comedy comes from how little each understands the other's world. The emotion comes from each seeing the other as fully human.
Where to see it
Driss's first day. He could not care less about Philippe's world, and that gives you both the comedy and the start of the friendship.
Getting the laugh from one character's face as they react to what another is doing. The joke lands on the reaction, which the camera catches precisely.
How this film uses it
François Cluzet's Philippe cannot move, so his face becomes the film's main tool for comedy. The camera stays on him as he reacts to Driss's outrageous behavior. Cluzet's tiny, precise expressions, like the held-back laugh and the appalled blink, set the film's rhythm.
Where to see it
Driss's first encounter with the modern art Philippe collects. You watch Philippe's face as Driss gives his opinion.
Using music as the way 2 characters get to know each other. Sharing or arguing over songs stands in for working out identity, respect and desire across a social gap.
How this film uses it
Philippe's classical music and Driss's Earth Wind & Fire stand for the social gap between them. At the emotional turning point, Philippe hears Driss's music as joyful and stops hearing it as something lesser. Giving in to the music stands for the bigger acceptance between them.
Where to see it
Driss dancing to 'Boogie Wonderland' at Philippe's birthday party, with Philippe laughing as he watches. The music closes the gap before either of them admits it.
Writing a disabled character as a full person with humor, anger, desire and choices of their own. The disability is one part of their life, and the film never plays it for tragedy or inspiration.
How this film uses it
Nakache and Toledano, along with Cluzet's performance, make sure you never pity Philippe. His disability is a fact about him, and it does not define him. The friendship is possible because Driss refuses to pity him.
Where to see it
Driss's job interview. He shows no reverence or discomfort at all, and that sets the tone for the whole film.
Questions
The Intouchables: quick answers
What filmmaking techniques does The Intouchables use?
CineCode breaks down 4 techniques in The Intouchables (2011): Odd Couple Class Structure, Reaction Shot Comedy, Music as Social Bridge and Disability Without Pity.
Who directed The Intouchables?
Olivier Nakache, Eric Toledano directed The Intouchables, released in 2011.
What films are similar to The Intouchables?
Films that share techniques with The Intouchables include Seven Samurai (1954), The Apartment (1960), 3 Idiots (2009), The Shape of Water (2017).
