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

Brenda Fricker's Best Supporting Actress Oscar winning performance was the only nominee in the category in a Best Picture nominee that year.

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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

[last lines]
Christy Brown: What'll we drink to?
Mary: Let's drink to Dublin.
Christy Brown: To Dublin? Why?
Mary: Because Christy Brown was born there.

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Connections

Referenced in Flawless (1999)

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Soundtracks

Foggy Dew
(uncredited)
Traditional

User Reviews

One of the best performances by an actor in the last decade.

I am in awe of Daniel Day-Lewis' acting in this movie. I can't think of anyone else who could have portrayed the real-life writer Christy Brown as well as he does. He doesn't just portray the ravages of cerebral palsy of his character but the intelligence, humour, courage and love of the man. The character also is not deemed a saint but allowed to have humanity - the foul mouth and love of booze and women. If a movie can be called inspiring than this has to be it.

Lewis and Brenda Fricker as his mother both won Oscars and Ray McAnally as his father also deserved one. The movie is well directed by Jim Sheridan with whom Lewis again worked with in the excellent In The Name Of The Father as well as The Boxer.