That Day Omar Sy Stole Our Hearts with SAMBA: A Review

Probably unlike most social dramedies about the plight of the illegal migrant worker in France, Samba opens with a wedding. And boy, what a wedding! A troupe of professional dancers in flapper costumes prance around as the newly-wed couple cut the first sliver from an enormous tiered cake. Immediately afterwards, the cake is whisked away into the bowels of the hospitality hierarchy, whose first stop is the prepping table, where a dozen French chefs adorn dozens of plates with fresh raspberries. But we can’t stop here. Onwards down the pecking order because where we need to go is at the very bottom, where resides Samba Cissé (Omar Sy), the dish washer, mechanically wiping each soiled plate with his hand before putting it through the belt.