The Intouchables

"Did the script really have to perpetuate such crass racial stereotypes?"

"Not a great film but a warm one that pushes the viewer's emotional buttons so deftly it feels like a massage. My guess is that you will laugh and cry at all appropriate moments. Resistance is futile."

"It is possible to summarize the experience of watching 'The Intouchables' in nine words: You will laugh; you will cry; you will cringe."

"For once, the hype is justified. This is a charming, uplifting French drama – an irreverent, humorous take on disability, closely drawn from real-life."

"Sy and Cluzet are superb actors who demolish stereotypes about race and social class by finding a common humanity in their characters. Acting this good forgives a lot of sins."

"This is a story that has been told time and again in the movies, and sometimes the performances overcome the condescension of the formula."

"The power dynamic may charm the French, but it's likely to push the cringe buttons of local moviegoers in Obama's post-'The Green Mile America.' Apart from the wince-inducing moments, 'The Intouchables' is often a pleasant buddy picture."

"It's easy to see why this had been a colossal hit in France and caught the eye of Harvey Weinstein along the way: it's undemanding, heart-warming fodder with mass appeal. Sadly, it's also predictable and its big emotional beats are often harder to stomach than an overripe brie."

"Sy and Cluzet give their parts more conviction than they deserve, even when the former is forced to re-enact the falsetto-singing-in-the-bubblebath bit from 'Pretty Woman.' But even their energy can't revive a corpse this dead."