Wow! Such a good movie.

Masterful Movie

A lot of fun.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

No doubt inspirational, "My Left Foot" is an unflinching look at the life of Christy Brown, born with cerebral palsy and who, with great determination, taught himself to paint with his only usable limb. The character of Christy is portrayed by two remarkable actors, Hugh O'Connor as the young boy, and Daniel Day-Lewis as the adult Christy. The film is not shy about revealing all of the frustration and anger that motivates the man, and in some respects, one will stand in shock at his behavior when things in life do not go his way. His behavior at the dinner party when his language teacher, Dr. Eileen Cole (Fiona Shaw) announced her engagement to Peter (Adrian Dunbar) was one example. His utter rage at an insult against the family, resulting in a barroom brawl was another, so the person was not entirely sympathetic. There were aspects of the picture that didn't ring true to me, and not having read Christy Brown's autobiography, I have no way of knowing if my observations have merit. But for one, there is not one single example of anyone bullying or making fun of the young Christy as a boy. This seemed rather unbelievable to me, as knowing how cruel kids can be, even when not meaning to, that there were no examples of that kind of behavior. Nor was there any reference to how the parents (Ray McAnally, Brenda Fricker) dealt with their son's bodily functions. This may sound gross or unsympathetic, but someone in the family had to attend to those necessities and it wasn't addressed in any sort of way. The behavior and attitude of Christy's many siblings was also a model of decorum throughout, and one marvels at the idea that there were never any squabbles among them growing up.As with many of these biopics, I'm always leery about the Hollywood treatment of making a film with the greatest universal appeal, so that also led me to doing a quick search on the real Christy Brown. I was startled to learn that his relationship with Mary Carr (Ruth McCabe) began while he was having an affair with a married American woman who he intended to wed upon her divorce. The marriage to Mary was fraught with it's own set of problems, as she was accused of being an abusive alcoholic and habitually unfaithful. So the movie's feel good ending was not entirely accurate in the way it was portrayed. Be that as it may, Daniel Day-Lewis is astounding as the adult Christy Brown, having earned a Best Actor Oscar for his efforts. I would almost call it the best performance ever by an actor of a disabled person, but have to qualify that now after having seen Eddie Redmayne's portrayal of Stephen Hawking in 2014's "The Theory of Everything". I'm still puzzled though over Brown's cryptic written words after coming to terms with Eileen Cole's engagement - "All is nothing. Therefore nothing must end." In trying to parse the phrase, anything I come up with doesn't make sense.

Seriously you would ask yourself "Has Daniel Day-Lewis ever pulled any muscles on his face while filming?". He was brilliant for pulling it off and staying in character. He really showed and made me aware of the challenges a person with cerbal palsy can face! Like the most amazing thing I learned about the real Christy Brown, he painted with his life foot and Christ almighty, the paintings were absolutely out there! Man I wish I was able to paint like that especially using your left foot and never mind using both hands! However since I am not interested in painting, I think I'll pass on this haha. Also Brenda Fricker was excellent too by acting as a wonderful Irish mother who cared about Christy and never gave up on him! I tell ya, she was better than the other mothers on that street who called Christy an eejit for making "noises" while the mother was unconscious. I felt like I wanted to shake them and tell them to go look themselves in the mirror, disability is everywhere like! It was very shameful how disability was frowned upon during the 60's/70's. At least Brown proved them wrong and was successful in his art/writing career! Really good movie, just watch it, it really stands out well for an Irish film!

My Left Foot was the film that broke Daniel Day-Lewis into the spotlight, giving him his first of three Oscar wins and labelling him as one of the finest actors in the world. Day-Lewis is the focal point in a movie that doesn't get enough praise in its other aspects. Why doesn't it? It is a Cinderella story about perseverance and rising about the tough times. This general premise has been done, but My Left Foot does it in a completely different way and has more to offer than crippled man.My Left Foot is based on the biopic of Christy Brown. Brown grew up in an overly crowded family in the slums of Dublin, but it was his extreme cerebral palsy that was the family's biggest burden. The only regular functioning part of his entire body is his left foot. His family comes to realize that he is actually smart, as he is able to write and paint with his left foot. He becomes a success as a painter, poet, and writer, ultimately writing the book in which this movie is based on.What I like about this (and what separates this from other similar films) is that it is less of a rise story and more of a coming-of-age biopic. The Browns try to make ends meet and accommodate Christy's disability to everything. Mr. and Mrs. Brown are very admirable. Brenda Fricker does a dynamite performance as Mrs. Brown--a role which earned her a well-deserved Oscar. She is very loving and supportive of her son, and can see beyond his disability. When Christy first writes, it is touching and inspirational. As Christy becomes more of a success and the Browns get out of poverty, it is such a joy. 1989 was an excellent year for movies. Believe it or not, Daniel Day-Lewis' Oscar win was not much of a stretch. Tom Cruise in Born on the Fourth of July and Kenneth Branagh in Henry V were just as deserving as Day-Lewis. But it was Day-Lewis that was the victor, in what is still his best performance. As I said earlier, Brenda Fricker also won, but she was a deadlock--nobody in the Best Supporting Actress category was close. These two are the acting highlights, but the entire movie as a whole is so perfect. We have the real Christy Brown to thank for that.

I stumbled upon this movie during a special pedagogy lesson in school. I was stunned by the actors's performances - they're truly talented. Daniel Day-Lewis and Brenda Fricker both won an Oscar for their efforts.The movie is about a real guy named Christy Brown, who, despite his severe handicap, wins a stubborn struggle for respect, love and the outside world's prejudice. When Christy was born in 1932 he encountered complications, which resulted in severe brain damage. He could, for example, not talk or sit alone, and the only body part that he learned to control was his left foot. The film follows how Brown deal with his disability in a fight against loneliness, isolation and sadness.A touching movie, who gets to you a little extra. I held back tears.