The Eighth Day (1996)

Original title

Le Huitième Jour

Directed by

Jaco Van Dormael

Genre

drama film, comedy film

Country

United Kingdom, France, Belgium

Runtime

1h 55m

Rated

NR

Rating

7.4 of 10 from 315 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A stressed businessman accidentally meets a man with Down syndrome who has run away from his institution. They form an unlikely friendship that changes both of their lives.

heartfeltbittersweetwarmquirkygentledreamlikehopefultouching

What happens

The Eighth Day (French: Le huitième jour) is a 1996 Franco-Belgian comedy-drama film that tells the story of the friendship that develops between two men who meet by chance. Harry (Daniel Auteuil), a divorced businessman who feels alienated from his children, meets Georges (Pascal Duquenne), an institutionalised man with Down syndrome, after Georges has escaped from his mental institution and is nearly run over by Harry. The film was selected as the Belgian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 69th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee. The film was written and directed by Jaco Van Dormael. Some scenes in the film appear as dream sequences, often employing magical realism. The music of Luis Mariano ("Mexico" and "Maman, Tu Es La Plus Belle Du Monde") is used in these scenes, with actor Laszlo Harmati playing Mariano, who died in 1970. The original music score is from Pierre Van Dormael, Jaco's brother. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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