This movie so easily could had become a forced and melodramatic one but
luckily it's one that got made with lots of tact and skill, making this
one fine drama, with a comical touch to it as well.
Guess that I really like contrasts in movies. The two main characters
are complete opposites of each other, in about every way imaginable.
Driss is poor, Philippe is rich. Driss is vibrant, Philippe is a
quadriplegic. Driss is black, Philippe is white, etcetera. They are a
complete mismatch on paper but yet they become best friends, which
forms the central point of this movie and works out so well because it
gets made believable.
They don't just become good friends, they also learn from each other
and I believe that they also become better persons because of that.
This is were the movie its warmth and soul comes from, in my opinion.
It doesn't ever dwell on it that Philippe is bound to a wheelchair and
can only move his head, or that Driss is poor and also has a poor
relationship with this family. If anything, this movie is a celebration
of life, rather than than a movie that will bring you down. The effect
of these sort of movies often is that it actually strengthens its drama
because you feel far more involved with it, also since the movie
doesn't shoves its drama down your throat constantly.
There are some small side-plots in the movie but the good news about
them is that they don't distract from the main theme and storyline of
the movie and the movie never puts its emphasis too much on any of the
side-plots or its secondary characters. It keeps a great and effective
focus on its main subject, throughout pretty much the entire film.
It's a great movie, in every way. It has a good look to it, that isn't
cheap or rushed. It's a respectful and professionally made movie, which
all paid off for it.
Also the acting is just great. Everybody seems perfectly cast in their
roles and know how to handle their characters and manage to fit within
the style and tone of the overall movie. Of course François Cluzet and
Omar Sy carry most of the movie and they did a more than great job with
this.
It's just a movie I can't say anything bad or negative about. It's well
made and effective, which makes this one of the better genre movies out
there!
9/10
Watch trailer
I loved this movie, saw it in the cinema. I was rathe baffled to read Roger Ebert's mediocre review about this movie, that came out just today.
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