Abdel Sellou

The true story of a charismatic Algerian con-man whose friendship with a disabled French aristocrat inspired the record-breaking hit movie The Intouchables (American remake, The Upside, starting Kevin Hart and Bryan Cranston, coming March 2018). The story of Abdel Sellou's surprising friendship with aristocrat Philippe Pozzo di Borgo has been told and retold around the world-most recently in the major motion picture The Upside, with comedian and movie star Kevin Hart portraying Abdel and his edgy charm. In this appealing memoir, Sellou shows us the real man behind Kevin Hart's smiling face. The book takes us from his childhood spent stealing candy from the local grocery store, to his career as a pickpocket and scam artist, to his unexpected employment as a companion for a quadriplegic. Sellou tells his story with a stunning amount of talent, humor, style, and-though he denies that he has any-humility.

A Memoir of the Friendship That Inspired the Acclaimed Film

The Upside

Wahre Lebensgeschichte des Pflegers Driss aus dem Film äZiemlich beste Freundeä, der vom querschnittsgelähmten Geschäftsführer des Champagnerherstellers Pommery trotz seiner kriminellen Karriere als Pfleger eingestellt. Sie entdecken gemeinsame Werte und schlagen dem Leben so manches Schnippchen.

Einfach Freunde : die wahre Geschichte des Pflegers Driss aus Ziemlich beste Freunde

Caroline Andrieu

The former pickpocket and charismatic scam artist whose friendship with a disabled French aristocrat inspired a popular motion picture recalls his youth as an Algerian immigrant in Paris and the famous friendship that would change his life.

You Changed My Life

In Ziemlich beste Freunde hat er die Zuschauer verzaubert – jetzt erzählt Abdel Sellou, das reale Vorbild für den Pfleger Driss, zum ersten Mal seine eigene Geschichte. "Letztes Jahr sind Philippe und ich die Helden eines fabelhaften Films geworden: Ziemlich beste Freunde. Plötzlich will jeder mit uns befreundet sein! Alles, was die beiden im Film machen – Verfolgungsjagden im Luxusschlitten, Gleitschirmfliegen, Nachtspaziergänge durch Paris –, haben wir wirklich erlebt. Aber da ist noch viel mehr ..." Mit einem Nachwort von Philippe Pozzo di Borgo.

Die wahre Geschichte des Pflegers Driss aus "Ziemlich beste Freunde"

Einfach Freunde

In de Franse succesfilm Intouchables is hij de zwarte Senegalees genaamd Driss, maar in werkelijkheid is hij Algerijn en heet hij Abdel Sellou. In dit boek vertelt hij met vaart en humor over zijn leven: hoe hij in de jaren zeventig uit Algerije naar Parijs kwam, opgroeide in een probleemwijk, al snel in de kleine criminaliteit belandde en gevangenisstraffen kreeg opgelegd. Tot hij op een dag aanbelde bij de steenrijke Philippe Pozzo di Borgo, die door een ongeluk bijna geheel verlamd was en daarom op zoek naar een persoonlijk verzorger. Hoewel het contrast tussen beiden niet groter kon zijn, kreeg Abdel Sellou de baan en werden de twee vrienden voor het leven. Abdel: `Philippe heeft me de ogen geopend voor een wereld die ik dacht te haten, de wereld van mensen die alles hebben. Ik heb hem uitgenodigd in de mijne, waar mensen niets hebben... Het lag voor de hand dat we niet met elkaar overweg zouden kunnen. We zijn van elkaar gaan houden.

intouchables

Jij veranderde mijn leven

The story of how Abdel Sellou (a charismatic ex-con) came to be the caretaker of Philippe Pozzo di Borgo (a paralyzed French aristocrat) inspired the award-winning French movie Les Intouchables (2012), which became an international phenomenon and broke records as one of the most successful French movies of all time. Now, The Upside, the American remake of Les Intouchables, starring Kevin Hart, Bryan Cranston, and Nicole Kidman will be released in both the US and the UK in January 2019. Abdel Sellou and Philippe Pozzo di Borgo were two people marginalized by society: Sellou a wisecracking, unemployed immigrant, just out on parole; Pozzo a man born to wealth and privilege, recently paralyzed from the neck down after a paragliding accident. How they came to help each other, and the unlikely friendship that became a lifeline for them both, is an uplifting story that's now been told and retold around the world.

You Saved My Life tells the extraordinary true story of the charming Algerian con-man whose friendship with a disabled French aristocrat inspired the record-breaking hit film, The Intouchables (the American remake starring Kevin Hart and Bryan Cranston coming in 2018). Sellou's fictional reincarnation, Driss, played to critical acclaim by French comedian Omar Sy in the movie Les Intouchables, captured the hearts of millions. Already a bestseller in France and Germany, You Changed My Life shows us the real man behind Sy's edgy charm. The book takes us from his childhood spent stealing candy from the local grocery store, to his career as a pickpocket and scam artist, to his unexpected employment as a companion for a quadriplegic. Sellou has never before divulged the details of his past. In many interviews and documentaries, he has evaded or shrugged off the question of his childhood and his stay in prison, until now. He tells his story with a stunning amount of talent, with humor, style, and-though he denies that he has any-humility. Sellou's idiosyncratic and candidly charming voice is magnificently captured in this memoir, a fact to which his friend Philippe Pozzo di Borgo testifies in his touching preface for the book.

Abdel Sellou

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