A brilliant heart-warming true story that makes me laugh and cry with every view.

Rating: 8/10 (4 October 2015)

As an enthusiast for film in every aspect, I truly believe this French drama to be a masterpiece. Beginning with the incredibly well suited score by Ludovico Einaudi which captures the essence of the film I was initially unsure what to expect. The opening scene was majestic and beautifully filmed with dramatic cinematography and introduced the clever comedy throughout the picture.
The true story that the script is based off may not at first glance seem relevant to many people, however I realised that actually this film notes a lot on differences in culture and creates a character for Driss, the protagonist who is low in the socio-economic scale, that expresses a lot of ideas that we might not realise and shows that the ways of the wealthy are not only largely different on the surface but deep beneath are much like that of any class.
What really made this film get the rating I have given it is the heart that it has, Driss and his friend Philippe have masterfully scripted conversations which have a beautiful mixture of melancholy and satire which gives the film a very natural sense and elevates the fluency of the pacing. Many scenes I found myself bursting with laughter as if i were having a laugh with close friends, the film feels very personal because of this and the accompaniment of Einaudi's soft yet tenacious performance generates a homely atmosphere throughout.
the beautiful cinematography carefully mimics that of a persons sight, with artistic blurring and intriguing angles. These angles and camera effects bring you deep into the character of Philippe, whom is paralysed beneath his neck, as it feels much like his view. Philippe's character tends to stare out into the distance and the filming resembles this aspect.
Finally this incredible film is accompanied by acting which feels very real and each actors style worked perfectly with the character that they played. the film as an entirety felt natural and real and the superb acting was the heart of the greatness.