The Intouchables is known and loved by many people. This is an amazing and hilarious story of an immobilized aristocrat and his eccentric nurse assistant, who recently got out of prison. And if you watched the movie to the end, then you know that it is based on a true story.
Philippe Pozzo di Borgo is now a 70-year-old Corsican-French businessman, aristocrat, and son of a French duke. He grew up in wealth and privilege, studied at the best schools in France, and became the manager of the first wine brand Moet and Chandon, then the director of Pommery. And everything was fine until he broke his spine and was left immobilized after a paragliding accident in the Swiss Alps in 1993.
It was a huge blow to Philip's family because by that time his wife Beatrice had been battling cancer for several years. And after the accident, she had to take care of her husband... After only three years, she passed away and the millionaire fell into depression. He was brought back to life by Abdel Yasmin Sellou, who has a completely different life story.
Abdel was born in Algeria in a family of 9 children, and he was one of the most troublesome hooligans. The boy was sent to live with relatives in Paris when he was only 4. At the age of 10, he was engaged in theft and extortion from classmates. Because of the frequent drives to the police, he was expelled from school, he traded in theft from Parisian tourists and soon thundered into prison.
Having been released, Abdel learned that he could receive state support, but only if he found a job. So he went to an interview with Philip, who was looking for a nurse.
By that time, about 90 people had already passed the interview with Philip, but as soon as he saw Abdel, he immediately realized that he had found the one he was looking for. Although the Algerian was rather straightforward, arrogant, and with a special sense of humor. Oh yeah, and he also stole a Faberge egg during the interview. But Philip admitted that he just wanted anyone not to feel sorry for him, but to be treated normally. He felt life and the beauty of its unpredictability in this simple guy.
Philip was then 42, and Abdel 21. "We were two desperate people at different ends of society: a rich invalid and a young ex-convict." Moreover, Abdel's jokes about Philip in a wheelchair were much more intolerant than they could even show in the film. He was even nicknamed the "guardian devil" of the millionaire. Thanks to him, Philippe equipped his wheelchair with a more powerful engine so that they could drive around the city.
They also have a lot of pranks. For example, they drove a car o high speed around the city, and when the police stopped them, Philip feigned a seizure, and the police took him to the disposal.
Abdel worked for Philip for 10 years. And then they got married almost at the same time. They met their future wives while traveling in Morocco. Abdel and his wife now live in their native Algeria, have three children, and run their own poultry farm.
Philip moved to his wife to Morocco, they have three daughters: two daughters of his wife and one adopted.
Both have written autobiographical books. And yes, Abdel comes to visit Philip and they are still friends!
