Purely Joyful Movie!

Best movie ever!

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

My best friend recommended it to me and she lent me the DVD. At the beginning,the poster didn't inspire me but then, I loved it right from the first scene. Very often, I couldn't stop laughing because the scenes and the characters were humorous. Some parts of the story are extremely comical but also unlikely for example when Mickael pretends to be Ned while he has never lied. All the actors are very talented and play their parts very well. We see very united, cheerful and friendly villagers especially the two main characters, they are very close and they are like brothers; it is a moving picture. I also think the plot is original : the idea of the lottery is a good one. It is funny and unlikely for young or old people. The characters are very friendly and always cheerful and I think the way they achieve their goal is funny even if some parts are a bit strange - and moving because everything ends like what Ned would have wished. There is a love story between Maggie and Finn, the farmer, but according to me it is not interesting and kitsch. Tullymore is a typical Irish village, we can discover different places : the moor, the sea, the forest, the cliffs... It is very representative of Irish setting. According to me, you can watch this movie with your family and I found it entertaining. You will find a lot of surprises all along the film and you will really feel the characters are your friends. Finally, I was crazy about the moral of the plot, because I think it is very instructive to say "money doesn't bring us happiness".

The promo for this film says it all. "When a lottery winner dies of shock, his fellow townsfolk attempt to claim the money." But, it's a lot more than just a planned fraud or crime. "Waking Ned Devine" is a comedy about life and friendship and sharing with neighbors. The perpetrators and brains behind the deal have a sense of doing justice to the memory of Ned. A scene near the end seems to send a message that that's how providence would have this story play out. The movie starts off with people in the small coastal village of Tullymore, Ireland (Tulaigh Mhor) watching for the weekly drawings in what seems to be the Irish National Lottery. Jackie O'Shea (played by Ian Bannen) and his wife Annie (Fionnula Flanagan) see a small item in the Dublin news that leads them to trace the jackpot winner to their village of 52 people. Jackie and his friend, Michael O'Sullivan (David Kelly) devise a plan to try to find out who the winner is. The happenings before the discovery that Ned Devine is the winner, are hilarious. Then, when they discover he died while watching the TV drawing, with his winning ticket in his hand, the idea about claiming the prize for themselves take hold. Humor runs rampant as these two gents call to claim the prize, and then enlist the whole community, saying that everyone will get an equal share. Of course there has to be a hitch – and that's in the person of Lizzy Quinn, played by Eileen Dromey. The film is rife with comedic scenarios and wonderful sidesteps about local romance and friendships. This is a wonderful, beautifully acted, hilarious and warm comedy that all should enjoy. It was filmed entirely on the Isle of Man with some wonderful scenic shots along the coast of the Irish Sea. The village of Tullymore is fictitious. Incidentally, the lottery prize is 6,894,620 pounds. In 1998 US dollars that's nearly $18.2 million. Divided 52 ways, it comes to almost $350,000 per person in Tullymore.

"Waking Ned" is a film that I have been looking for for years, and last night I finally did. Even thought it's supposed to be passed in Ireland, the story is filled with a lot of British humour, since it has much irony and sarcasm. For that reason, I laughed in several scenes, due to the unscrupulous characters and situations that have been written and portrayed all the way through. David Kelly, in my opinion, is the one who deserves the biggest congratulations; I mean, all the cast is extremely professional, but Kelly has the best performance-- and maybe the best character I have ever seen. In real life, it's evident that those people wouldn't be able to hide the secret forever; occasionally, someone would be just too talkative to keep it to oneself. The biggest moment for me is when the witch is almost succeeding in telling on the village, but a car crash pushes her phone cab into the sea; I guess I've never wanted to see someone dying in a movie. Please don't get me wrong; I'm a honest person in real life and I am NEVER conniving on cheating, but these people are sooo captivating that makes it impossible to not support them. "Waking Ned" proves to be, all in all, a GREAT comedy that truly entertains any kind of audience, and maybe that's why it has just became one of my favorite movies!

In a tiny Irish seaside village Tullymore with only 52 souls, Ned Devine wins the national lottery and dies of shock. Jackie O'Shea (Ian Bannen), his wife Annie (Fionnula Flanagan) and friend Michael O'Sullivan (David Kelly) are trying to pin down who the winner is and being extra nice to everybody. They invite the lottery players to dinner and figures out that Ned Devine is the only one who didn't show up. Jackie convinces Michael to impersonate Ned to collect the winnings with the collusion of the entire town except for the town malcontent Lizzie Quinn.This is a charming little British movie. The laughs aren't big except maybe the naked old guy. Naked old guys are always fun. The locals are various variety of quirky eccentricity. I love the likable scheming trio. There is an undeniable charm about this village and an easy nice feel about this movie.