''The Eighth Day'' () is a 1996 Franco-Belgian

comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...

film that tells the story of the friendship that develops between two men who meet by chance. Harry (

Daniel Auteuil Daniel Auteuil (; born 24 January 1950) is a French actor and director who has appeared in a wide range of film genres, including period dramas, romantic comedies, and crime thrillers. In 1996 he won the Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Fest ...

), a divorced businessman who feels alienated from his children, meets Georges (

Pascal Duquenne Pascal Duquenne (born 8 August 1970) is a Belgian actor. He shared the Best Actor Award in the 1996 Cannes Film Festival for his performance as Georges in the movie '' The Eighth Day'', with Daniel Auteuil, who played Harry. He lives in Brussel ...

), 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 The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Bes ...

at the

69th Academy Awards The 69th Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) took place on March 24, 1997, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles beginning at 6:00 p.m. PST / 9:00 p.m. EST. During the ceremo ...

, but was not accepted as a nominee.Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The film was written and directed by

Jaco Van Dormael Jaco Van Dormael (born 9 February 1957) is a Belgium, Belgian film director, screenwriter and playwright. His films especially focus on a respectful and sympathetic portrayal of people with mental and physical disability, disabilities. Van Dorm ...

. Some scenes in the film appear as dream sequences, often employing

magical realism Magical realism, magic realism, or marvelous realism is a style or genre of fiction and art that presents a realistic view of the world while incorporating magical elements, often blurring the lines between speculation and reality. ''Magical rea ...

. The music of

Luis Mariano Luis Mariano Eusebio González García (13 August 1914 – 14 July 1970), also known as Luis Mariano, was a popular tenor of Spanish origin who achieved celebrity in 1946 with "La belle de Cadix" ("The Beautiful Lady of Cadix") an operetta by ...

("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 Pierre Van Dormael (24 May 1952 – 3 September 2008) was a Belgian jazz guitarist and composer. In 1988, he played in the James Baldwin Project with David Linx and Deborah Brown (vocalists), Slide Hampton (trombone), Diederik Wissels (piano ...

, Jaco's brother.

Cast

as Harry *

as Georges *

Miou-Miou Sylvette Herry (born 22 February 1950), known professionally as Miou-Miou (), is a French actress. A ten-time César Award nominee, she won the César Award for Best Actress for the 1979 film ''Memoirs of a French Whore''. Her other films inclu ...

as Julie *

Henri Garcin Henri Garcin (born Anton Albers; 11 April 1928 – 13 June 2022) was a Belgian film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films from 1956 to 2022. Selected filmography * '' Mademoiselle and Her Gang'' (1957) * '' Mata Hari, Agent H21'' (1964) * ...

as The director of the bank *

Isabelle Sadoyan Isabelle Sadoyan (12 May 1928 – 10 July 2017) was a French-Armenian actress. Career She made her theater debut in 1950 with the play ''Bottines et collets montés'', based on plays written by Eugène Labiche and Georges Courteline, directe ...

as Georges' Mother * Michele Maes as Nathalie * Fabienne Loriaux as Fabienne * Hélène Roussel as Julie's mother * Alice van Dormael as Alice * Juliette Van Dormael as Juliette * Didier De Neck as Fabienne's husband * Marie-Pierre Meinzel *

Sabrina Leurquin Sabrina may refer to: People and fictional characters * Sabrina (given name), a feminine given name, including a list of persons and fictional characters with the name * Hafren, known in English as Sabrina, a British princess in Welsh mythology ...

as Waitress in fast food restaurant * Laszlo Harmati as

Reception

The film grossed $24.3 million in France and $37.1 million worldwide.

Awards

This film was nominated for the

Palme d'Or The (; ) is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festiv ...

award, the top prize at the

1996 Cannes Film Festival The 49th Cannes Film Festival took place from 9 to 20 May 1996. American filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola served as jury president for the main competition. Sabine Azéma hosted the opening and closing ceremonies. British filmmaker Mike Leigh wo ...

. It did win the Best Actor award at the festival, which was given to both

and

. The film was also nominated for a

César Award Cesar or César may refer to: Arts and entertainment * César (film), ''César'' (film), a 1936 French romantic drama * César (film), ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt Places * Cesar, Portugal * Cesar Department, Colombia * Cesar R ...

and a

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...

award.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Eighth Day 1996 films 1996 comedy-drama films 1996 independent films Down syndrome in film 1990s French-language films Films about friendship Films directed by Jaco Van Dormael Films shot in Brussels Gramercy Pictures films Pan-Européenne films PolyGram Filmed Entertainment films Belgian comedy-drama films Belgian independent films French-language Belgian films

Cast

Reception

Awards

See also

References

External links