Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow. Untouchable, a…
2024
Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow.
Untouchable, a charming French comedy about two friends who have almost nothing in common, has been a huge international success. But before the story became a cinematic sensation, how exactly did a rich French aristocrat and an Algerian immigrant with a criminal past become good friends? Philip and Abdul first met in Paris in 1993 when Philip was looking for a nurse. He was from a very wealthy family. At one time he had been a successful business man, living a life of great luxury. Then he had a terrible paragliding accident and lost the use of his arms and legs. Life in a wheelchair was lonely and boring. Philip was struggling to imagine the future, and he needed practical help with his day-to-day life.
Philip interviewed more than 80 people for the job of a nurse. But none of them seemed right. Then he met Abdul, who had quit a life of crime in Algeria and moved to France to look for work. He was lively, intelligent and quick-thinking, with a crazy sense of humour. Philip got on with Abdul immediately, and he offered him the job. The two men didn't have much in common. Abdul loved pop music, but Philip preferred classical music. Philip loved modern art, but Abdul hated it. Philip's family was sure that he had made a bad choice. They believed that Philip needed someone much more sensible. Meanwhile, Abdul wasn't planning on staying in the job for long.
However, their working relationship quickly developed into a close friendship. Abdul gave Philip the support he needed. More importantly, his energy and sense of humour brought fun and excitement back into Philip's life. Abdul helped Philip make trips to other countries. Both of them now live in different countries, each with a wife and family. They keep in touch regularly. All that really matters to their friendship, though, it is their shared love of laughter and adventure.
Read the sentences given below:
(a) ‘Untouchable’ is a French comedy movie.
(b) The theme revolves around 2 friends, Philip and Abdul, who have similar tastes.
(c) The movie was a huge success in France and Algeria.
- A.
(a), (b) and (c) are all incorrect
- B.
(a) and (c) are correct, (b) is incorrect
- C.
(b) and (c) are incorrect, (a) is correct
- D.
(a) and (b) are correct, (c) is incorrect
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Concept: In a passage-based True/False item, a statement is marked correct only when the passage directly states it or it follows necessarily from what is stated; it is marked incorrect when it contradicts the passage, or when it adds a specific detail (a name, a place, a number) that the passage never actually gives — even if a more general version of the claim would be true. No outside assumption can substitute for the text itself.
Application: Apply this rule to each statement using the extract.
(a) is correct — the opening line calls the film “a charming French comedy,” directly supporting the claim that it is a French comedy.
(b) is incorrect — the extract opens by calling Philip and Abdul “two friends who have almost nothing in common” and gives concrete contrasts (different tastes in music and in art), directly contradicting “similar tastes.”
(c) is incorrect — the extract only states the film has been a “huge international success”; it never names France and Algeria as the specific countries of that success (those two countries appear only as the two men’s own backgrounds, not the film’s reception).
So exactly one statement, (a), is supported by the text, while (b) and (c) are not.
Cross-check: Contrasting the other combinations against the same text confirms this.
Treating all three statements as unsupported overlooks the extract’s own line calling the film a French comedy.
Treating the international-success statement as supported assumes it names France and Algeria specifically, a detail the passage never gives.
Treating the shared-tastes statement as supported overlooks the extract’s explicit description of the friends’ differing tastes in music and art.