802. My Left Foot (1989)

Running Time: 103 minutes
Directed By: Jim Sheridan
Written By: Shane Connaughton, Jim Sheridan, from book by Christy Brown
Main Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis, Brenda Fricker, Ray McNally, Fiona Shaw, Hugh O'Conor

THE STORY OF CHRISTY BROWN

I just had a hunch about this one. More often than not, those infamous hunches don't pan out and high hopes for a movie quickly crumble. But on this particular occasion the hunch did indeed pan out and delivered in droves, as "My Left Foot" was without a doubt a fantastic film, showcasing one of the best performances I've ever witnessed.

Christy Brown (Day-Lewis) was born in 1932 in the city of Dublin, Ireland. Upon his birth he was diagnosed as mentally challenged, however that didn't stop his loving mother and gruff father from loving him. There were several other brothers and sisters and the family didn't have much money, but they were close knit, living in their two-story home in Ireland. Around the age of ten, while trying to convey a message to his family, by grasping a piece of chalk between the toes of his left foot and trying desperately to communicate to them, his parents realized that he couldn't possibly be mentally challenged and his diagnosis was then changed to cerebral palsy. Though his speech was barely audible to the rest of the family, his mother (Fricker) always seemed to know exactly what Christy was saying, and despite almost total paralysis, with the exception of his left foot, Christy was able to have a pretty normal youth, playing ball with the other boys and sending love notes to girls that he admired. He eventually learned to more carefully control his foot and toes and took to painting, where he excelled.

Later in life, he was approached by Dr. Eileen Cole (Shaw) and taken to an institute for cerebral palsy patients. Though he didn't work out well at the institute, Dr. Cole continued to work with Christy at his home and turn his inaudible speech into a more clear, prominent voice. After working so closely with Dr. Cole, Christy falls in love with her and in a scene filled with loads of emotion, goes into an outrage when Dr. Cole informs Christy that she's engaged. Christy can't stand being alone and imprisoned in his own body, so he tries to commit suicide, except he can't quite reach his left foot to his right wrist and fails at the task. Christy eventually wants to try his hand (or foot) at writing, and follows up the notion by publishing his life story as "My Left Foot: The Christy Brown Story". Despite his outraegously successful life as a painter, writer and overcomer of odds, he still can't shake the feeling of lonliness and turns to his nurse Mary for companionship.

Do I even have to mention the performance that Day-Lewis turns out here? No, I probably don't, but I will. Daniel Day-Lewis is a fantastic actor and that's never more apparent than with his portrayl of Christy Brown. After watching the movie, I decided to do some light reading into the film, and found out that Day-Lewis refused to break character between takes, even going so far as to frustrate his agent to the point that he stormed off the set. What an actor and seriously...what a performance, as Day-Lewis transforms himself completely into a man with cerebral palsy, a man lonely, afraid and sometimes frustrated. This movie is also probably one of the most inspiring films I've ever seen and I'm sure I'll think twice the next time I complain and will be able to tell myself more easily that "It could be worse". I feel like I'm babbling and I really don't want to do that. Sometimes you just like a movie and that's that and trying to explain why you like it, is like trying to explain the color red to a blind man...there are just no words.

RATING: 10/10 Finally a 10/10 and I don't count "Kramer vs. Kramer" because that has been a personal favorite of mine for years and "My Left Foot" was viewed by me for the first time tonight.

MOVIES WATCHED: 143
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 858

September 13, 2010 2:47am