This evening we saw the suddenly – and justifiably – popular feel good film Les Intouchables. On an impulse, Philippe (François Cluzet), a very wealthy aristocrat and quadriplegic since a hang gliding accident, employs Driss (Omar Sy), a fresh-out-of-prison angry young man from the banlieue, as his carer. Somehow the chemistry works and the two men bond – not least because Driss refuses to treat Philippe as anything other than an equal, which is precisely what Philippe wants and nobody else understands. The two men open up each others’ worlds – and that of Philippe’s pampered entourage – riffing off of each others’ senses of humour, whilst also exploring deeper themes such as love and art and parenthood. Thanks to deft directing from Eric Toledano and Olivier Nakache, the film avoids being mawkish or maudlin, but it is the acting of Cluzet (who can, after all, only move his head) and Sy that makes the story believable. Which is only as it should be since, as the title credits roll, we learn that the film is based on a true story and we even see, briefly, the real ‘Philippe’ and ‘Driss’. If you are feeling down about humanity, this is the film to see.