No one expects much from Christy Brown, a boy with cerebral palsy born into a working-class Irish family. Though Christy is a spastic quadriplegic and essentially paralyzed, a miraculous event occurs when, at the age of 5, he demonstrates control of his left foot by using chalk to scrawl a word on the floor. With the help of his steely mother — and no shortage of grit and determination — Christy overcomes his infirmity to become a painter, poet and author.
Acting
Day-Lewis contorted himself for months; Fricker's eyes carry whole scenes.
Direction
Sheridan never lets suffering become spectacle — dignity intact.
Writing
Christy's voiceover: crude, poetic, utterly unsentimental.
Director
Jim Sheridan
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Day-Lewis refused to leave his wheelchair on set, requiring crew to feed him. Co-star Brenda Fricker reportedly 'wanted to kill him.'
The real Christy Brown died in 1981; his novel 'Down All the Days' outsold Beckett in Ireland. This film revived working-class Irish cinema internationally.
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