The film was theatrically released on 24 February 1989 to critical acclaim. Reviewers praised the film's screenplay and direction, its message, and especially the performances of Day-Lewis and Fricker.[7][8] It was also a commercial success, grossing $14.7 million on a £600,000 budget. At the 62nd Academy Awards, the film received five nominations, including for the Best Picture, with Day-Lewis and Fricker winning Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress, respectively. In 2018, the British Film Institute ranked it as the 53rd greatest British film of the 20th century.[9]
In 1932, Christy Brown is born into a Dublin family of 15. Doctors discover he has severe cerebral palsy. Christy is unable to walk or talk. He is loved and supported by his family, especially his mother. One day, Christy's mother trips down the stairs while in labour and Christy was the only person home to see it. He was able to alert some neighbours and summon them over to help. Christy's father, who never believed Christy would amount to anything, starts to become proud after witnessing him use his left foot, the only body part he can fully control, to write the word "mother" on the floor with a piece of chalk.
Consequently, Christy seeks a hobby in painting. The neighbourhood youngsters include him in their activities, like street football, but when he paints a picture and gives it to a girl he likes, she returns it. Later, his father loses his job and the family faces exceptionally difficult hardships, so Christy devises a plan to help his brothers steal coal to their mother's dismay. Christy's mother, who had been gradually gathering some savings in a tin in the fireplace, finally saves enough to buy him a wheelchair.
Christy is then introduced to Eileen Cole, who takes him to her school for cerebral palsy patients and persuades a friend of hers to hold an exhibition of his work. Christy falls in love with Cole, but when he learns during the dinner that she is engaged to be married, he considers suicide. His mother helps him build a private studio for himself, but soon afterward his father dies of a stroke, and during the wake Christy instigates a brawl. At this point, Christy starts writing his autobiography, "My Left Foot". Cole returns and they resume their friendship. Later on, Christy attends a charity event where he meets his handler, a nurse named Mary Carr. She begins reading his autobiography. He asks Mary to go out with him and they then happily leave the fete together.
Day-Lewis became interested in the project when he read the opening scene, which features him, as Brown, using his left foot to place a record on a player and then placing a needle onto it so that it will play.[10] He said of the scene: "I knew it couldn't be done... and that intrigued me."[10] Many scenes were filmed through a mirror, as Day-Lewis could only manipulate his right foot to perform the actions seen in the film. Day-Lewis spent some time preparing for the film at Brown's alma mater in Dublin. He later returned there for a visit, with his Academy Award.[11]
Day-Lewis, known for his extreme method acting, insisted on staying in character during the production of the film, refusing to do anything that Brown couldn't do. This meant that members of the film crew had to move the actor around in a wheelchair, lift him over obstacles, and even feed him.[12][13][14]
My Left Foot received widespread critical acclaim. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 98% of 44 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.2/10. The website's consensus reads: "No doubt most will come to My Left Foot for Daniel Day-Lewis' performance, but the movie's refusal to go downbeat will keep it in viewers' minds afterwards."[15]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 97 out of 100, based on 18 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[16]
Roger Ebert gave the film four out of four stars, writing: "My Left Foot is a great film for many reasons, but the most important is that it gives us such a complete picture of this man's life. It is not an inspirational movie, although it inspires. It is not a sympathetic movie, although it inspires sympathy. It is the story of a stubborn, difficult, blessed and gifted man who was dealt a bad hand, who played it brilliantly, and who left us some good books, some good paintings and the example of his courage. It must not have been easy."[17]
^GDN Online Desk (27 August 2017). "Hollywood: 15 low-budget movies that did well at the Box Office". Gulf Daily News. from the original on 14 July 2018. Retrieved 14 July 2018.
^"My Left Foot (1989)". Box Office Mojo. from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 14 July 2018.
^British Film Institute – Top 100 British Films 12 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine (1999). Retrieved August 27, 2016
^ abHirschberg, Lynn (8 December 2007). "Daniel Day-Lewis: the perfectionist". The Telegraph. from the original on 21 February 2016. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
^"My Left Foot". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. from the original on 10 June 2018. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
^Ebert, Roger (2 February 1990). "My Left Foot movie review & film summary (1990)". RogerEbert.com. from the original on 13 July 2018. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
^"Recount! Oscar Voters Today Would Make 'Brokeback Mountain' Best Picture Over 'Crash'". The Hollywood Reporter. 18 February 2015. from the original on 22 January 2019. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
^. The New York Times. 19 October 2014. Archived from the original on 19 October 2014. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
^"15th Annual Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards". Los Angeles Film Critics Association. from the original on 13 October 2015. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
left, foot, other, uses, disambiguation, story, christy, brown, also, known, simply, 1989, biographical, comedy, drama, film, directed, sheridan, adapted, sheridan, shane, connaughton, from, 1954, memoir, same, name, christy, brown, production, ireland, united. For other uses see My Left Foot disambiguation My Left Foot The Story of Christy Brown also known simply as My Left Foot is a 1989 biographical comedy drama film directed by Jim Sheridan adapted by Sheridan and Shane Connaughton from the 1954 memoir of the same name by Christy Brown A co production of Ireland and the United Kingdom it stars Daniel Day Lewis as Brown an Irish man born with cerebral palsy who could control only his left foot Brown grew up in a poor working class family and became a writer and artist 6 Brenda Fricker Ray McAnally Hugh O Conor Fiona Shaw and Cyril Cusack are featured in supporting roles My Left FootTheatrical release posterDirected byJim SheridanScreenplay byShane Connaughton Jim SheridanBased onMy Left Footby Christy BrownProduced byNoel PearsonStarringDaniel Day Lewis Ray McAnally Brenda Fricker Cyril Cusack Fiona Shaw Hugh O Conor Adrian Dunbar Ruth McCabe Alison WhelanCinematographyJack ConroyEdited byJ Patrick DuffnerMusic byElmer BernsteinProductioncompaniesFerndale Films Granada Films Raidio Teilifis EireannDistributed byPalace PicturesRelease date24 February 1989 1989 02 24 1 Running time103 minutes 2 CountriesIreland 3 United Kingdom 3 LanguageEnglishBudget 600 000 4 Box office 14 7 million 5 The film was theatrically released on 24 February 1989 to critical acclaim Reviewers praised the film s screenplay and direction its message and especially the performances of Day Lewis and Fricker 7 8 It was also a commercial success grossing 14 7 million on a 600 000 budget At the 62nd Academy Awards the film received five nominations including for the Best Picture with Day Lewis and Fricker winning Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress respectively In 2018 the British Film Institute ranked it as the 53rd greatest British film of the 20th century 9 Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Production 4 Reception 4 1 Critical response 4 2 Accolades 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksPlot EditIn 1932 Christy Brown is born into a Dublin family of 15 Doctors discover he has severe cerebral palsy Christy is unable to walk or talk He is loved and supported by his family especially his mother One day Christy s mother trips down the stairs while in labour and Christy was the only person home to see it He was able to alert some neighbours and summon them over to help Christy s father who never believed Christy would amount to anything starts to become proud after witnessing him use his left foot the only body part he can fully control to write the word mother on the floor with a piece of chalk Consequently Christy seeks a hobby in painting The neighbourhood youngsters include him in their activities like street football but when he paints a picture and gives it to a girl he likes she returns it Later his father loses his job and the family faces exceptionally difficult hardships so Christy devises a plan to help his brothers steal coal to their mother s dismay Christy s mother who had been gradually gathering some savings in a tin in the fireplace finally saves enough to buy him a wheelchair Christy is then introduced to Eileen Cole who takes him to her school for cerebral palsy patients and persuades a friend of hers to hold an exhibition of his work Christy falls in love with Cole but when he learns during the dinner that she is engaged to be married he considers suicide His mother helps him build a private studio for himself but soon afterward his father dies of a stroke and during the wake Christy instigates a brawl At this point Christy starts writing his autobiography My Left Foot Cole returns and they resume their friendship Later on Christy attends a charity event where he meets his handler a nurse named Mary Carr She begins reading his autobiography He asks Mary to go out with him and they then happily leave the fete together Cast EditDaniel Day Lewis as Christy Brown a man born with cerebral palsy Hugh O Conor as Young Christy Brown Brenda Fricker as Bridget Fagan Brown Christy s mother Ray McAnally as Patrick Brown Christy s father Fiona Shaw as Eileen Cole Christy s carer Kirsten Sheridan as Sharon Brown Christy s sister Alison Whelan as Sheila Brown Christy s sister Eanna MacLiam as Benny Brown Christy s brother Declan Croghan as Tom Brown Christy s brother Marie Conmee as Sadie Brown Christy s sister Cyril Cusack as Lord Castlewelland Phelim Drew as Brian Brown Christy s brother Eileen Colgan as Nan Ruth McCabe as Mary Carr Christy s handler and eventual wife Adrian Dunbar as Peter Cole s fianceProduction EditDay Lewis became interested in the project when he read the opening scene which features him as Brown using his left foot to place a record on a player and then placing a needle onto it so that it will play 10 He said of the scene I knew it couldn t be done and that intrigued me 10 Many scenes were filmed through a mirror as Day Lewis could only manipulate his right foot to perform the actions seen in the film Day Lewis spent some time preparing for the film at Brown s alma mater in Dublin He later returned there for a visit with his Academy Award 11 Day Lewis known for his extreme method acting insisted on staying in character during the production of the film refusing to do anything that Brown couldn t do This meant that members of the film crew had to move the actor around in a wheelchair lift him over obstacles and even feed him 12 13 14 Reception Edit nbsp nbsp Daniel Day Lewis and Brenda Fricker s performances garnered widespread critical acclaim with former winning the Academy Award for Best Actor and latter winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Critical response Edit My Left Foot received widespread critical acclaim On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes 98 of 44 critics reviews are positive with an average rating of 8 2 10 The website s consensus reads No doubt most will come to My Left Foot for Daniel Day Lewis performance but the movie s refusal to go downbeat will keep it in viewers minds afterwards 15 Metacritic which uses a weighted average assigned the film a score of 97 out of 100 based on 18 critics indicating universal acclaim 16 Roger Ebert gave the film four out of four stars writing My Left Foot is a great film for many reasons but the most important is that it gives us such a complete picture of this man s life It is not an inspirational movie although it inspires It is not a sympathetic movie although it inspires sympathy It is the story of a stubborn difficult blessed and gifted man who was dealt a bad hand who played it brilliantly and who left us some good books some good paintings and the example of his courage It must not have been easy 17 In 2015 The Hollywood Reporter polled hundreds of academy members asking them to re vote on past controversial decisions Academy members indicated that given a second chance they would award the 1990 Academy Award for Best Picture to My Left Foot instead of Driving Miss Daisy 18 Accolades Edit List of awards and nominations Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient s ResultAcademy Awards 19 26 March 1990 Best Picture Noel Pearson NominatedBest Director Jim Sheridan NominatedBest Actor Daniel Day Lewis WonBest Supporting Actress Brenda Fricker WonBest Adapted Screenplay Shane Connaughton and Jim Sheridan NominatedBritish Academy Film Awards 20 11 March 1990 Best Film My Left Foot NominatedBest Actor Daniel Day Lewis WonBest Supporting Actor Ray McAnally posthumous WonBest Adapted Screenplay Shane Connaughton and Jim Sheridan NominatedBest Makeup Ken Jennings NominatedEuropean Film Awards 21 25 November 1989 Young European Film of the Year My Left Foot NominatedEuropean Director of the Year Jim Sheridan NominatedEuropean Actor of the Year Daniel Day Lewis NominatedGolden Globe Awards 22 20 January 1990 Best Actor Motion Picture Drama NominatedBest Supporting Actress Motion Picture Brenda Fricker NominatedIndependent Spirit Awards 23 24 March 1990 Best Foreign Film My Left Foot WonLos Angeles Film Critics Association 24 16 January 1990 Best Actor Daniel Day Lewis WonBest Supporting Actress Brenda Fricker WonNational Board of Review 25 26 February 1990 Top Ten Films My Left Foot WonNational Society of Film Critics 26 8 January 1990 Best Actor Daniel Day Lewis WonNew York Film Critics Circle 27 14 January 1990 Best Film My Left Foot WonBest Actor Daniel Day Lewis WonWriters Guild of America Awards 18 March 1990 Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium Shane Connaughton and Jim Sheridan NominatedYoung Artist Awards 28 March or April 1990 Best Young Actor Supporting Role in a Motion Picture Hugh O Conor WonBest Motion Picture Drama My Left Foot NominatedSee also EditBFI Top 100 British filmsReferences Edit Jackson Laura Daniel Day Lewis The Biography Archived 31 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine John Blake 2005 p 137 My Left Foot British Board of Film Classification Archived from the original on 13 August 2020 Retrieved 14 July 2018 a b My Left Foot 1989 Archived 26 October 2017 at the Wayback Machine British Board of Film Classification GDN Online Desk 27 August 2017 Hollywood 15 low budget movies that did well at the Box Office Gulf Daily News Archived from the original on 14 July 2018 Retrieved 14 July 2018 My Left Foot 1989 Box Office Mojo Archived from the original on 9 November 2019 Retrieved 14 July 2018 The Irish Filmography 1896 1996 Red Mountain Press 1996 page 43 My Left Foot Rotten Tomatoes Fandango Media Retrieved 29 January 2023 My Left Foot critic reviews Metacritic Fandom Inc Retrieved 10 September 2018 British Film Institute Top 100 British Films Archived 12 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine 1999 Retrieved August 27 2016 a b Hirschberg Lynn 8 December 2007 Daniel Day Lewis the perfectionist The Telegraph Archived from the original on 21 February 2016 Retrieved 27 October 2015 Jordan Anthony J Daniel Day Lewis Gentleman A Memoir pp 1 22 Daniel Day Lewis Craziest Method Acting Stories Esquire 18 January 2018 Retrieved 18 January 2018 Thomas Matthew 15 October 2021 Why Daniel Day Lewis Once Made Crew Members Feed Him by Hand Daily TheThings Retrieved 15 October 2021 Russell Calum 21 November 2021 Daniel Day Lewis extraordinary method acting in My Left Foot Far Out Magazine Retrieved 21 November 2021 My Left Foot Rotten Tomatoes Fandango Media Archived from the original on 28 November 2017 Retrieved 29 January 2023 nbsp My Left Foot Metacritic Fandom Inc Archived from the original on 10 June 2018 Retrieved 10 September 2018 Ebert Roger 2 February 1990 My Left Foot movie review amp film summary 1990 RogerEbert com Archived from the original on 13 July 2018 Retrieved 13 July 2018 Recount Oscar Voters Today Would Make Brokeback Mountain Best Picture Over Crash The Hollywood Reporter 18 February 2015 Archived from the original on 22 January 2019 Retrieved 3 January 2020 The 62nd Academy Awards 1990 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Archived from the original on 2 April 2015 Retrieved 17 October 2011 Film in 1990 BAFTA Awards British Academy of Film and Television Arts Archived from the original on 1 July 2017 Retrieved 3 July 2022 European Film Awards Archive European Film Academy Archived from the original on 24 September 2015 Retrieved 23 January 2015 My Left Foot Golden Globes Hollywood Foreign Press Association Archived from the original on 28 January 2015 Retrieved 3 July 2022 My Left Foot 1989 The New York Times 19 October 2014 Archived from the original on 19 October 2014 Retrieved 23 January 2015 15th Annual Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards Los Angeles Film Critics Association Archived from the original on 13 October 2015 Retrieved 3 July 2022 1989 Award Winners National Board of Review Retrieved 3 July 2022 Critics Award to Drugstore Cowboy The New York Times 8 January 1990 Archived from the original on 23 January 2015 Retrieved 23 January 2015 Critics Circle Selects Left Foot for Best Film and Actor The New York Times 19 December 1989 Retrieved 3 July 2022 Eleventh Annual Youth in Film Awards 1988 1989 Young Artist Awards Archived from the original on 9 April 2014 Retrieved 31 March 2011 External links EditMy Left Foot at IMDb My Left Foot at Box Office Mojo My Left Foot at Rotten Tomatoes My Left Foot at the TCM Movie Database Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title My Left Foot amp oldid 1170363087, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
