Daniel Day-Lewis is an actor who is phenomenally talented, yet a lot of the films he appears in just aren’t very good. “The Unbearable Lightness of Being“ (which I re-titled “The Unbearable Lightness of Watching this Movie’), “The Age of Innocence” and “Gangs of New York” come to mind. He is terrific in all of these films, but the screenplay’s are just awful. If you really want to see him shine, you should see “Last of the Mohicans” or the recently re-released “My Left Foot.” Day-Lewis won a much deserved Oscar for his performance as Christy Brown, a real life Irish artist and writer. One wouldn’t think that artists and writers are a dime a dozen, but Brown had the distinction of being struck down by cerebral palsy and confined to a wheelchair. He was almost completely paralyzed, yet was able to create dazzling works of art, as well as write, using only his left foot. This film was based on his autobiography and follows Brown throughout his childhood and up through his adult life.

“My Left Foot” originally came out in 1989 and was one of those ‘movies I meant to see, but never did.’ Finally, thanks to Miramax’s new DVD release, I was able to find out just what an awesome performance he delivered. And I would be remiss if I failed to mention actress Brenda Frickers Oscar win as Brown’s mother. The two are amazing in this film, as are all of the fine actors who inhabit the cast.

This new DVD release offers up a brand new remastered version of the film and it looks and sounds great. Plus, there are some extra features that may be a bit short, but add a tremendous amount of value. You’ll find some footage of the real Christy Brown, as well as some comments from producer Noell Pearson, co-writer Shane Connaughton and actor Hugh O’Connor. O’Connor played Brown as a young boy in the film. There’s also a gallery of photos and a couple of original reviews of the film. The only thing I found really strange about the extra features was that there was nothing from Daniel Day-Lewis or director Jim Sheridan. I fully would have expected them to participate. I’m kind of wondering what happened there.

“My Left Foot” lived up to all the hype I had heard about it for so many years and I’m glad to have finally had the opportunity to see it. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Directed by: Jim Sheridan
Starring: Daniel Day Lewis, Ray McNally, Brenda Fricker, Fiona Shaw, Adrian Dunbar, Ruth McCabe
Extras: The Real Christy Brown, The Making of My Left Foot, Still Gallery, Reviews
Specifications: Widescreen (1.85:1) Enhanced for 16x9 Televisions, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: Miramax
Release Date: 9/16/2005
Region 1
MPAA Rating: R
Website

We'll give My Left Foot an A.