Intouchables (2011)

Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

WITH SUPPORT FROM

Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

Curriculum links

Les autres personnages

French language; family and friends, relationships,

contrasts in French society, prejudices; grammar

Marcelle, lisa (la fille de Philippe), Adama,

Fatou(tante/mre adoptive de Driss), Mina.

Main themes and activities

Les metteurs en scne (= les auteurs) du film

Comprehension, grammar and vocabulary exercises.

Description, comparison. Points for discussion. Writing skills.

Olivier Nakache et ric Toledano

Introduction

Ralisation: Olivier Nakache et ric Toledano

Scnario: Olivier Nakache et ric Toledano, daprs le livre de
Philippe Pozzo di Borgo.
Production: Quad Productions.
Photographie: Matthieu Vadepied
Montage: Dorian Rigal-Ansous
Date de sortie: 2 novembre 2011 (Festival de Locarno).
Pays dorigine: France.
Genre: Comdie.
Dure: 112 minutes
Rcompenses: Nominated for Golden Globes (Best Foreign
Language Film) and BAFTA Awards (Best Film not in the English
Language).
Box-office monde entier: $351,019,943,
including $13,179,837 in the USA

Dossier sur le film franais INTOUCHABLES,

destin aux tudiants de A-level en franais.

Thmes principaux
Lamiti, la famille, les privilges ou le manque
(here, deprivation), les prjugs.

Les acteurs principaux

Franois Cluzet (Philippe)
Omar Sy (Driss)
Anne Le Ny (Yvonne)
Audrey Fleurot (Magalie)

Intouchables, fiche technique:

Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

Activits de prparation pour la classe

Daprs laffiche de premire
page, o se passe le film?
Quel est le thme du film?
Voici laffiche utilise pour la sortie
en DVD sur le march anglo-saxon:
Quest-ce que limage utilise pour
cette affiche nous apprend de plus?

Synopsis
Compltez les blancs avec les propositions appropries (dans le cadre)
Paris, Philippe, aristocrate et __________________________, est ttraplgique. Avec sa ____________________________, il fait passer des
entretiens dembauche pour trouver un(e) aide domicile. Soudain, le black insolent Driss saute son tour, montre Philippe un document de
lagence pour lemploi et lui demande de le signer pour prouver quil fait l________________ de chercher un ______________________, pour
pouvoir continuer ______________________________ ses allocations-chmage. Philippe dfie Driss de ____________________________
pour lui pendant un mois, pour augmenter son exprience __________________________________________. Aprs a, Driss pourra
dcider sil veut continuer s______________________ de Philippe. Driss accepte le dfi et emmnage dans l____________________
particulier, et transforme la vie __________________________________ de Philippe et de ses ____________________________.

recevoir professionnelle htel employs intellectuel travailler secrtaire soccuper effort ennuyeuse emploi

At the Tyneside Cinema, on the day of the event, you will be given a number of activities to complete before and
after the film. You can find below some more activities based on the film, to work on after youve seen the film.

Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

Ma nnette!

Le vocabulaire familier
Les amis

Money

Un mec, un keum (*v=mec) A bloke.

Le fric, la thune, le pze, le pognon, loseille (*)

Dough, dosh, etc.

Ma nana, ma gonzesse, ma meuf, ma louloutte (*v)

A girl, a bird. Meuf is verlan for femme.

Tas pas dix balles ? (*) Do you have ten Euros?

(meaning can you lend them to me?).

Un pote, une pote, un poteau (*) A friend, a mate.

Mon jules, mon mec, mon keum (*v) My boyfriend.
In old-fashioned slang, jules used to mean pimp.
Mon loulou My boyfriend.
Loulou is short for mon loubard, which meansyob,
ma louloutte being the feminine.
Ma nnette (**) My bird
Mon frre (*) My brother for a friend.
Ma sur (*) My sister for a friend.

a ne vaut pas une thune ! (*)

Thats not worth a single penny! Une thune was originally, a
five-franc coin (more or less 50p). Nowadays, the word has lost its
original meaning and has become slang for money in general.
Cette bagnole, elle vaut de la thune. (*)
This car is worth a lot of money.
Une brique (*) Lit. A brick.
It also used to be the equivalent of un million anciens Francs. But
in 1960, the French adopted le nouveau Franc.
1 nouveau Franc = 100 anciens Francs = around 10 pence.
Therefore 1 million old francs was worth 10,000 new Francs. But
the expression remained, so now une brique = 1,500 Euros.

Mon cousin (*) My brother someone

with the same ethnic background.

* = familiar, ** = very familiar, *** = vulgar, v = Verlan (back-slang), Lit. = literally

Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

a va tre le coup
de bambou

Money: Too expensive

Money: Broke, rich, stingy

Cest super reuch (*v = cher) Reuch is verlan for cher.

Che/r became r/ch. The final was taken out,
leaving us with r/ch, pronounced reuch.

Je suis fauch (comme les bls) (*) Im broke.

Faucher means to mow. Once you mow the wheat,
les bls, there is not much left in the field.

a douille (*) Its expensive.

Expression understood by all, despite its uncertain origins.

Je suis sec (*) Lit. Im dry. Im broke.

Je suis raide (*) Im skint, Im penniless.

a cote bonbon (*) Its dear.

Never mind the origins of this expression, its
a bit old-fashioned now, anyway.
a cote les yeux de la tte (*) Lit.
It costs the eyes in your head. In French, an arm
and a leg are worth two eyes but not only that!
This expression has another variation
a cote la peau des fesses (*)
It costs the skin of your bottom.
Now, theres something precious!
Cest le coup de bambou (*) Lit.
Its a bamboo stroke. It means something is painfully
expensive. The notion of pain is recurrent when talking
about something expensive. For instance, after a nice meal
at the restaurant, customers know they are going to have
to face la douloureuse, the painful one, i.e. the bill.

Jai une galre de thune (*)

Une galre, a galley, is a word often used for un problme.
So this expression could mean something like Im currently
experiencing severe difficulties due to an obvious lack of cash.
Warning! Whenever someone uses this expression, the next minute
they are very likely to ask if you could lend them something.
Je suis plein aux as (*)
Officially translated as Ive got bags of lolly. But
anyway you dont have to worry about the origins of
the expression when youve got plenty of money.
Un radin, un rapiat, un pingre (*) A stingy man.
Une radine, une rapiat, une pingre (**) A stingy woman.

* = familiar, ** = very familiar, *** = vulgar, v = Verlan (back-slang), Lit. = literally

Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

Cet album, il est

trop mortel !

Le vocabulaire familie
Music: Positive comments

Music: Good vibe

Music: Positive power

a tue ! (*) Its a killer!

These phrases mainly apply to

certain types of music, those with an
appropriate beat i.e le rap, le fonk
(funk), le hip-hop, la techno, le
reggae, le raggamuffin, etc.

a envoie la pure ! (*) Its throwing/

spitting pure, literally Its particularly
appropriate for funky music.

Cest mortel ! (*) Its lethal!

Lit. Deadly.
Cet album, il est trop mortel ! (*)
This album is a right killer!

Jai pris une claque ! (*)

I was gobsmacked.

a dmnage ! (*) It moves!

Cest une vraie bombe ! (*)
Its a real bomb!
The ultimate compliment, it can
be used to describe a wicked
tune, riff, song, album, band...

a groove ! (*)
Same meaning as above.
a pulse ! (*) Its pumping!
a tourne ! (*)
Its running! (like an engine)

Jai pris une bonne /

une grosse claque ! (*)
I was flabbergasted.
Une claque is a smack.
These expressions are usually used
to describe really powerful records
or gigs. Of course, the strength of
the smack is proportional to the
energy released by the music.

* = familiar, ** = very familiar, *** = vulgar, v = Verlan (back-slang), Lit. = literally

Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

Combien cote
lentre ?

a cote les
yeux de la tte

Music: Rubbish
Cest de la daube (*) Its rubbish.
La daube is a sort of stew made with meat and leftovers.
Cest de la soupe (*) Its too soft, too middle of the road.
La soupe is soup.
Cest nase (**) Its boring, terrible.
According to dictionaries, nase is the equivalent of knackered,
exhausted (person), or kaputt (machine). In music, as
well as in every kind of art, it means a waste of time.
Cest grave (**) Even stronger than nase.
Grave is the equivalent of serious, grave, solemn
Can be used with other expressions + grave:

a pulse grave (**) Placed after any of the above

mentioned expressions, grave emphasizes and
amplifies the meaning, positive or negative.
Grave de chez grave
In case grave on its own is not enough to describe your
reaction to terrible or excellent music, grave de chez grave
stresses your point even more. It is constructed as if grave was
a trademark (like N5 de chez Chanel, N5 from Chanel).
Again it can be used on its own, inwhich case it means boring,
sad, awful:
Les boy bands, cest grave de chezgrave.
Also after another expression: Jai pris une
claque grave de chez grave.

Cest de la soupe grave (**)

a envoie la pure grave (**)

* = familiar, ** = very familiar, *** = vulgar, v = Verlan (back-slang), Lit. = literally

Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

Post-Film Activity
Write a 10-line conversation you might have amongst friends about INTOUCHABLES, using at least one slang word or idiom per interjection.
Use the template below.

Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

Analyser une scne: Diffrentes approches

En fonction des chelles de plan:
Pour commencer, quelles sont les fonctions des diffrents plans et des angles de prise de vue ?
Reliez les lments correspondants.

1. Prsentation du personnage et
des lieux o se droule laction.

A. Plan amricain (personnages

coups mi-cuisse)
/ Plan rapproch (personnages coups
au-dessus de la ceinture)

2. Prsentation dun personnage en action.

B. Plonge (plan pris dun point

dobservation plus lev que le sujet.)

3. Cration dun lien proche entre

le personnage et le spectateur.

C. Contre-plonge (plan pris

dun point dobservation se situant
plus bas que le sujet)

4. Scne suggrant linfriorit (les

personnages semblent domins).

D. Gros plan (visage dun personnage

ou partie du visage ou dtail)

5. Scne suggrant la
supriorit, la puissance...

E. Plan densemble (trs grands espaces

/ les personnages sont peine visibles.)

Choisir un extrait qui prsente une unit de sens; discuter sur les questions suivantes:
Quelle est latmosphre de la scne?
Quels sont les plans et angles de prise de vue (shots) qui crent cette atmosphre?
Quels sont les autres lments qui crent cette atmosphre (lumire, musique, etc...)?

Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy
En fonction des composants sonores (musique, bruits, voix):
couter un extrait en cachant les images. Inscrivez dans la colonne les sons que vous entendez.
Musique

Bruit

Voix

partir de vos notes, quelles hypothses pouvez-vous formuler?

O se droule laction? lintrieur, lextrieur?
Combien de personnages avez-vous entendu? Quelle langue parlent-ils? Comment les imaginez-vous? Physiquement? Psychologiquement?
quel type de film vous attendez-vous (sattendre quelquechose: to expect sthg)?

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Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy

Et (quest-ce qui se passe) aprs?

Ici, possibilit de diviser une classe en groupes; crivez un:

Scnario noir

Scnario rose

Scnario gris

Quest-ce qui se passera dans le film si

vous devez crire un scnario pessimiste?

Quest-ce qui se passera dans le

film si vous devez crire un scnario
romantique ou avec un happy end?

Quest-ce qui se passera dans le film

si vous devez crire un scnario de
film policier ou daventure, o la fin
nest ni tragique, ni heureuse?

Recherches sur la biographie et

filmographie dun personne clbre
Possibbilit de travail en groupe. Recherchez des
informations (biographie, filmographie, photos...) sur:

lacteur/actrice de votre choix, ou les personnes relles qui

ont inspir ce film (Philippe Pozzo di Borgo et son aide).
le(s) metteur(s) en scne

Rassemblez ces informations dans un petit dossier ou

sur un Powerpoint pour les prsenter la classe.

Production crite
crivez un article pour le site web ou le blog de votre cole:
Donnez une note de 1 10 pour exprimer votre enthousiasme
pour le film. Ensuite, crivez un article pour justifier votre
opinion, et incluez une petite description du film, avec
ce que vous avez le plus aim, et le moins aim.
crivez un article de presse racontant
lhistoire de Philippe et Driss

a dmnag

e!

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Intouchables (2011)
Study guide written by Hlne Beaugy
This study guide has been produced with the kind support of

www.routesintolanguages.ac.uk/northeast

www.networkforlanguages.org.uk

Learning, Engagement & Development at Tyneside Cinema

For more information on Tyneside Cinemas Learning, Engagement & Development (LEaD) programme
please visit www.tynesidecinema.co.uk/learn or contact: Ruth Hastings, Young Tyneside Projects
Officer, Tyneside Cinema, 10 Pilgrim Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 6QG.
Telephone: 0191 227 5510 ruth.hastings@tynesidecinema.co.uk www.tynesidecinema.co.uk/learn
Tyneside Cinema is a non-profit making organisation. Registered Charity number 502 592. Study Guide design by David McClure at www.velcrobelly.co.uk

Have you seen our other resources for using feature films in the MFL classroom?
These A-level study guides are FREE to download at www.tynesidecinema.co.uk/learn/14-19/resources

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