My Left Foot (1989)

Christy Brown, born with cerebral palsy, learns to paint and write with his only controllable limb - his left foot.

Director:

Jim Sheridan

Writers:

Shane Connaughton (screenplay), Jim Sheridan (screenplay)

Stars:

Daniel Day-Lewis, Brenda Fricker, Alison Whelan

Won 2 Oscars. Another 21 wins & 20 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Daniel Day-Lewis	...	Christy Brown
Brenda Fricker	...	Mrs. Brown
Alison Whelan	...	Sheila
Kirsten Sheridan	...	Sharon
Declan Croghan	...	Tom
Eanna MacLiam	...	Benny
Marie Conmee	...	Sadie
Cyril Cusack	...	Lord Castlewelland
Phelim Drew	...	Brian
Ruth McCabe	...	Mary
Fiona Shaw	...	Dr. Eileen Cole
Ray McAnally	...	Mr. Brown
Pat Laffan	...	Barman (as Patrick Laffan)
Derry Power	...	Customer in Bar
Hugh O'Conor	...	Young Christy Brown

Storyline

Christy Brown is born with cerebral palsy to a large, poor Irish family. His mother, Mrs. Brown, recognizes the intelligence and humanity in the lad everyone else regards as a vegetable. Eventually, Christy matures into a cantankerous artist who uses his dexterous left foot to write and paint.

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Plot Keywords:

british renaissance | younger version of character | foot | cerebral palsy | irish | 

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Taglines:

A film about life, laughter, and the occasional miracle.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Ireland UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 March 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

My Left Foot

Filming Locations:

Ardmore Studios, Herbert Road, Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland

Box Office

Budget:

£600,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$14,743,391

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ferndale Films, Granada Television, Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Judi Dench was originally cast as Mrs. Brown but had to withdraw when the National Theatre production of Anthony and Cleopatra was rescheduled.

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Goofs

Christy drank alcohol from a bottle in his pocket while waiting for his introduction. Nurse Mary was out of the room and Christy was alone. How did he put a straw into the bottle, then put them into his pocket?

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Quotes

Christy Brown: I've had nothing but Platonic love all me life. Do you know what I say? FUCK PLATO! And fuck all love that's not a hundred percent commitment!

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Connections

Referenced in Saturday Night Live: Jennifer Lawrence/The Lumineers (2013)

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Soundtracks

Foggy Dew
(uncredited)
Traditional

User Reviews

A remarkable film and performances by Day-Lewis and Fricker

Let me state at the outset that I have Cerebral Palsy and I went into this film expecting to have to make allowances for the lead performance. I left the theater half-convinced that they'd cast an actor who had Cerebral Palsy in the role, even though I knew that was not the case. The performances were generally excellent, with a special nod to Brenda Fricker and to Hugh O'Conner (I believe that's his name) as the young Christy Brown. Christy is talented, brash, arrogant, at times vulgar and petulant-in other words, human. This film, along with Gaby: A True Story and the documentary King Gimp, are excellent portrayals of life with CP. By no means a complete portrait, but fine examples of the disabled as human beings. Most highly recommended.