Waking Ned Devine (DVD, 1999)

In the tradition of movies like The Full Monty, comes a very funny story of lotteries, winners and losers in a small town of the Isle of Man, Tully Moor. The Characters are real and rich with depth and believability.

The small villa of Tully Moor, population 52, tucked away in the beautiful and lush Irish hills enjoys a slow paced and charming existence; but a national event -the state lottery- takes this town out of anonymity when one of their residents holds the winning ticket (worth more than 6 Million to be exact).

Two old friends, Jackie and Michael, discover the good news; But now, they want to know the identity of the winner. So they hold a dinner as they try to trick the ticket holder to reveal themselves. But the twist is the ticket holder {Ned Devine} died of shock when he realized he won, and now Jackie and Michael hatch a scheme to collect the lottery money because they know that their friend, Ned Devine, would want them to have it. It's a hilarious disaster with a wicked twist that causes Jackie and Michael to involve the entire town of Tully Moor; but the one person in the town that is the most difficult to get along with, will reveal thier scheme and have them all thrown in jail, even if she has to "walk all the way to Dublin to do it".
But another twist puts and end to her and the outcome is a truly heartwarming send off for their friend and unwitting benefactor, Ned Devine.

Joyous and truly human, this movie smiles at optimism, celebrates friendship and provides us with sincere entertainment that is truly charming. The characters are a treat and you feel as if you've known them all your life. In fact, this story will leave YOU holding a winning ticket.

This is definitely a movie one can watch every few months and laugh every time! Even if you do not play the lottery or hail from Ireland, you will appreciate this movie.
The lush hills of Ireland are the backdrop to this story of human greed, need, and love. It opens with Jackie O'Shea watching the lottery drawing - he asks his wife to bring him some food, she tells him to get it himself. As each numbered ping pong ball starts to be announced, Jackie starts checking the numbers off on his ticket. As the drawing goes on, his wife starts to show interest, they may have the big winner! She graciously now gets him the bowl of food he requested and brings it to him as he jumps up that they won! As he takes the food, it is revealed that he only pulled this ruse to get his wife to bring him his food.
BUT the next day, Jackie sees in the paper that someone in their little town has indeed won the drawing. What happens then is Jackie, his best friend Michael O'Sullivan and Jackie's wife decide they shall befriend whomever is the holder of the winning ticket. Since this is not a spoiler, I will say no more on plot but what entails as they first hunt for the winner and then find the winner, you will be entertained nonstop along the way.
The movie will also have you questioning yourself, what would you do in a similar situation?
Heartwarming, endearing, a touch of black humor - a movie that will stay with you forever and have you chuckling anytime you see a skinny elderly man anywhere near a bicycle.

Again, I was visiting my son and his Irish-born wife where I watched this Irish-derived comedy. Why can't our producers and directors come up with innocent humor like this? Hardly any profanities, innocent bared skin scenes, and showing us all what we have to look forward to as we age, our bodies start to fail us, and the everlasting tale of human greed. The characters were expertly cast and the villainess was so horrid that the ending was a relief! The scenery was expert and the play on words so remarkable that each scene kept you listening closely to every word. I doubt that filming this movie was anywhere near as expensive as the Sci-Fi flicks that are so unreal and fictitious. Hardly anything gets destroyed (except a telephone booth)and we all cheer for that. With a variety of ages in this story, it has something for everyone. A little boy without a father, old men trying to show their worth, their old wives reading them like a book and calling them out on their charades, and younger adults looking for love in a small village that just isn't likely to grow much. I'm guessing after seeing this, many folks will want to visit the Isle of Man to enjoy its quiet beauty and colorful inhabitants. Please, more movies like this!

This movie is nothing but fun!! I saw it on an Indi film channel once, and had to have it!! If you watch it, you'll be taking a wild romp in Ireland with a very small local village and its lovely and charming residents. The characters in this story are very real, and you'd just love to be at the pub with them hearing their stories, and conspiring with them to collect the lottery winnings on behalf of thier dearly departed neighbor, Ned Devine. Although not a "chick flick", there is a little love story on the side to follow just for kicks. This is a laugh out loud experience that is a grand expedition away from the Hollywood spew that most of today's films are made of - it's more intimate and personal, and not fake or flashy. You won't be disappointed in this movie, and I guarantee you'll watch it time and time again.

This film does more then give you a quaint peek inside a small town. It builds up its charachters to people you wish you could know in real life and even live near!

The humor is at times a bit morbid but I appreaciate that.Another good clean film with out vulgar profanity or sex scenes. There is nudity ( the famouse beach/motorcycle ride but it is presented in a humorous non sexual way.