Excuse My French: Hollywood’s Doomed Remakes of French Comedies

Enfin! It’s here: The Upside, the American remake of the hit 2011 French comedy Intouchables—about a wealthy white quadriplegic who hires a black man from the projects as his live-in caregiver—is finally coming out after sitting on the shelf due to sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein. And as it turns out, there isn’t really any upside to the situation: It’s being released in the midst of costar Kevin Hart’s seemingly endless public controversies. Add to this Bryan Cranston’s superfluous comments about playing a disabled character and the material’s problematic magical-black-man narrative—in both versions, the caregiver teaches his employer to loosen up and enjoy life—et c’est pas du joli.