“The Intouchables” for the win.
One of the biggest curiosities surrounding country submissions for the foreign language film category at next year’s Academy Awards was what France would submit forward. With Michael Haneke’s French-language “Amour” being submitted by Austria, it seemed down to Jacques Audiard’s “Rust & Bone” (the critical favorite) and Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano’s “The Intouchables” (the commercial favorite).
READ MORE: Complete List of Announced 2012 Foreign-Language Academy Award Submissions
Perhaps cleverly considering Oscar’s mainstream tastes in the category, France went with the latter, which has grossed $355 million worldwide (more than any other French film in history). The film depicts the friendship between Philippe (François Cluzet), a wealthy quadraplegic, and Driss (Omar Sy), a poor man hired as his live-in caregiver. Sy beat out “The Artist” star Jean Dujardin for best actor at last year’s Cesar Awards (France’s equivalent of the Oscars), which perhaps bodes well.
Like “The Artist,” “The Intouchables” was released Stateside by The Weinstein Company.
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