The Eighth Day (Le Huitième Jour) (1996)

67% of critics liked it
(6 reviews)
85% of users liked it
(4,850 ratings)

Two men with seemingly nothing in common become unlikely friends in this drama from France. Harry (Daniel Auteuil) is a salesman working for a large but faceless corporation, where he's become a success at the expense of his personal life. His wife Julie (Miou-Miou), frustrated by his lack of… More Two men with seemingly nothing in common become unlikely friends in this drama from France. Harry (Daniel Auteuil) is a salesman working for a large but faceless corporation, where he's become a success at the expense of his personal life. His wife Julie (Miou-Miou), frustrated by his lack of concern for his family, has divorced him, and while he still has visitation rights to his children, he manages to forget when it's his weekend with his daughters, and he neglects to pick them up at the train station. Harry is depressed and nearly suicidal; while driving late one rainy night, he accidentally hits a dog who is walking with Georges (Pascal Duquenne), a personable young man with Down's Syndrome. Georges lives in a mental institution, where he's happy and well cared for, but when several of the other patients leave for a weekend visit, Georges decides that he should leave too, and he sets out to visit his mother. Harry can't bring himself to leave Georges behind, so after burying the dog, he offers to drive him to his mother's home, which becomes the start of a complicated odyssey for the two of them, especially after Harry finds out that Georges' mother is no longer alive. Actor Pascal Duquenne actually does have Down's Syndrome; he and co-star Daniel Auteuil shared the Best Actor award at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 54 min.
Directed By: Jaco Van Dormael
Genres: Drama, Art House & International, Comedy

In Theaters: May 22, 1996 Wide

Critic Reviews

Mike Clark, USA Today
Try imagining Rain Man without the laughs but with fantasy sequences featuring a Mexican singer in garb out of Chevy Chase's Three Amigos! and a mouse.
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice
A buoyant spiritual film that celebrates the mysteries of friendship and precious moments of wonder when life sparkles.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

Lucas M

A beautiful and powerful, Van Dormael's film is magic and present wonderful works of Mr. Auteuil and Mr. Duquenne.
familiar s

Hm, so it seems I'm once again in minority (well, that's not unusual). I found it neither funny enough nor emotional enough. And the major problem: I despise it heavily when logic is defied for the sake of entertainment, while it could have been made equally entertaining… More
Hm, so it seems I'm once again in minority (well, that's not unusual). I found it neither funny enough nor emotional enough. And the major problem: I despise it heavily when logic is defied for the sake of entertainment, while it could have been made equally entertaining while still maintaining (more or less) logic. The movie is way too cheesy for its own good. Harry's attachment to Georges, an invalid stranger, was quite abrupt and seemed forced. Why doesn't he leave him when he gets out of his car? He too wishes to get rid of him at that time. But suddenly he develops a special feeling for him and begins to care for him more than George's own sister. Okay, I understand that he gets soft for him because he also shares the feeling of being abandoned. The relationship could have been better established without sacrificing entertainment. The way the sequences are handled in this movie is quite poor, IMHO. Surely, it reminds one of Rain Man which was far better than this one. I'd rather watch Rain Man umpteenth times than watch this one again. It neither generates enough laughs (I laughed only when Harry was getting beaten by the truck driver) nor enough emotions to moist your eyes.
Wahida K

Very touching Movie. Tissue required to watch this Movie.
Arash X

Puts movies like Rain Man & Forrest Gump in shade, Simply touching & powerful with great perfs

Cast

            Daniel Auteuil as Harry

            Pascal Duquenne as Georges

            Miou-Miou as Julie

            Isabelle Sadoyan as Georges' Mother

            Henri Garcin as Company Director

            Michele Maes as Nathalie

            Jo De Backer as Husband

            Didier De Neck as Fabienne's Husband

            Josse De Pauw as Policeman

            Didier Ferney as Showroom Salesman

            Dominic Gould as Harry's Colleague

            Gerard Hernandez
            
            Raymond Lescot as "Big Vegetable"

            Sabrina Leurquin as Waitress

            Fabienne Loriaux as Fabienne

            Remy Julienne as Lorry Driver

            Helene Roussel as Julie's mother

            Marc Schreiber as Showroom Salesman

            Alexandre von Sivers as Doctor

            Roland Depauw as TV Chef

            Jean-Henri Compère as Teacher

            Olivier Gourmet as Father

            Dieudonné Kabongo as Dustman

            Andrea Simon as Tramp

            Georges Siatidis as Showroom Security Guard

            Jean Bollery as Nathalie's Father

            Alain Bougnet as Band Member

            Magali Côte as Band Member

            Sophie De Kerkhove as Dancing Girl

            Guy De Longree as Band Member

            Isabelle De Nayer as Band Member

            Erik De Staercke as Waitress

            Yves Degen as Showroom Manager

            Jean Désert as Band Member

            Bernard Eylenbosch as Dancing Man

            Monique Fluzin as Nathalie's Mother

            Jacqueline Ghaye
            
            Marie Godeau as Georges' Niece

            Pierre Godeau as Georges' Nephew

            Michèle Gousset as Band Member

            Patrick Harcq as Dustman

            Laszlo Harmati as Luis Mariano

            Christian Hecq as Shoe Shop Manager

            Philippe Hinck as Band Member

            Patricia Houyoux
            
            Lotfi Yahia Jedidi as Dustman

            Stéphane Keyser as "Dentofresh" Guy

            Kim Chi N'Guyen as Mongol Baby

            Dominique Lecat as Band Member

            Fernand Leclercq as Band Member

            Nicolas Meeus as Band Member

            Marie-Pierre Meinzel as Saleswoman

            Yves Pelgrims as Band Member

            Jean-Luc Piraux as Pedestrian

            Nathalie Ponlot as Spanish Woman

            Vincent Rapaillerie as Band Member

            Séréna Ruspoli as Wife

            Ebrahim Salem as Hindu

            Jacques Staes as Band Member

            Alex Stainier as Band Member

            Tam Vo as Japanese Pianist

            Alice van Dormael as Alice

            Juliette Van Dormael as Juliette

            Yasmine Van Hevel as Showgirl

            Christian Van Vlierberghe as Band Member

            Laurette Vankeerberghen as Cleaner

            Claude Vienne as Band Member

            Pauline Zerla as Little Girl
See full cast