Waking Ned Devine

What would you do if you won the lottery? What would you do if a friend had won?

In the small Irish village of Tullymore, someone has won the national lottery, but only the winner knows who they are. When Jackie (Ian Bannen) reads of the win in the newspaper, he recruits his best friend, Michael (David Kelly), to help locate the lucky winner from the villages 52 residents so that they may weasel their way into his or her good graces and share in the windfall.

When the winner is identified as being Ned Devine, the two run into a small snag - Ned has passed away from the shock of winning. Not to be set back by this inconvenience, Jackie concocts a scheme whereby they will put in the claim for the ticket and impersonate Ned until the cheque can be cashed, believing that Ned wants them to share in his good fortune.

The plan seems good, and is set to work, until the representative from the Lotto company mentions that he will need to comfirm with the village that he is indeed Ned Devine before the cheque can be issued.

It's difficult to find fault with the video quality on this disc. Blacks were solid and deep, detail was sharp and in focus without being too sharp, and colour - oh the colours in this film are breath-taking, with some amazing cinematography of the landscape making you wish that you were actually there with the cast and crew. Incidentally, it was filmed on location in the Isle of Man.

Presented in Dolby Surround, the score makes good use of the soundstage, bringing you into the village with good Irish music. Sound effects make good use of the left and right channels, although I don't recall hearing much from the rears - not that that is a problem in this film, as it is character driven more than action. As such, dialogue is what's important, and that's what you get - clean and clear the entire way through, the only problems you may have would be concerning the accent of some. Set your volume at the beginning and then put the remote away, as you won't be needing it again.

• Theatrical Trailer
• Cast and Crew Bios - of the director and five principal actors.
• Interviews - again, with the director and the five principals. Each lasts about 2 minutes where they get to describe their character and the story, as well as what appealed to them, and what they think will appeal to audiences.
• "Making of" - the usual featurette style, where we see scenes from the film interspersed with interview material, plus one or two shots of the filming taking place. What is most disappointing about this, is that most of the interview material is exactly what we watched in the previous extra.

This is a truly wonderful film, and one of those rare comedies where everything that occurs is believable. While it may not be one for children, Waking Ned Devine has an appeal that will cross age boundaries and touch anyone with a sense of humour. More people need to see this movie, so do yourself and your friends a favour, and go out and buy the DVD - you won't be disappointed.

It's the perfect way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon - I should know, I just did :)