Whisky Galore! (1949)

A good whisky needs time to fully express itself; drinking it without its having reached its maturity just won't do. Well, like a great whisky, this film has developed itself over time. Already 65 years old, and that is certainly a long period of ageing, "Whisky Galore" is still crisp, certain, subtle and appealing, what you would expect both a great spirit and a great film to be. Like the perfect sip, it gets ahold of you from the very beginning, captivating the drinker (or the viewer) with calculated pace and timing, keeping your interest from start to finish. The movie deals easily with complex issues, such as the relation between parents and offspring, military and civilian, State and folk, always leaning towards the weaker. Ever gentle, it will make you smile and leave you with a nice reminiscence lingering for a long time: once again, just as a glass of the best scotch would do. Cheers!

The people of the little village of Toddy on one of the Outer Hebrides runs out of whiskey and there is no prospect of any coming in. A shroud descends on the island. No one smiles. The elderly waste away.Then, through the seasonable interposition of a gracious Providence, a ship is wrecked just offshore while carrying a cargo of 50,000 cases of scotch. The villagers, champing at the bit while waiting for the Sabbath to end, finally manage to save some 250 cases before the ship goes down.The sun shines again and the islanders are happy -- except for the comically strict captain of the Home Guard who learns of the theft and calls in the authorities to confiscate the goods. He almost does it, too.It's a fine farce. The comedy is understated and flows naturally from the unnatural situations. The laughs are never forced. I'll give just one example.As the men of the village are finishing the transfer of all that booze from the ship to a fleet of rowboats, the ship itself gives a lurch and lists heavily. The cargo hold, still full of stone-heavy cases of whiskey, is filled with tumbling cartons. One man is trapped below and when his rescuers hurriedly pull the crates away from him, they find him sitting there with a resigned but not at all unhappy expression. If you're going to lose your life, this is the proper way to do it -- crushed by the water of life.There's a dumb coda, but it's sarcastic and can be ignored safely. Otherwise this is a truly heart-warming movie that belongs to the "happy peasant" genre. The outsiders are cold and repressed, while the peasants dance, sing, drink, and feast. There are far worse examples of the genre. I particularly like the fact that, at the end, the moralistic outsider isn't converted by the peasants. He simply goes away in frustration.

Whisky Galore is a lovely, charming film - without a mean thought, a swear word, or a hidden intention in sight. It has a charm of it's own - slow-paced at first, then by turns quicker and quicker - and it's funny without resorting to anything inappropriate. The islanders are good characters and the situations sweet - it makes an excellent tonic to the constant assault of modern action comedies. It stands as one of the best of the Ealing comedies - and that's no poor recommendation - more than worth your time - provided you are willing to be drawn in.Might make you want a wee dram though...

Glancing through the other comments, it would appear that the most negative response to this one is the suggestion that it wouldn't be much fun to view more than once. Having just seen it for the first time, I can only say that I would happily watch it next week, proving only that it's just about impossible to get complete agreement on anything. For this viewer, the fact that the setup here is so simple means that a great deal of the humor depends on timing and delivery, and this cast obviously relish the job at hand. In fact, some of it seems so obvious that it almost shouldn't be funny even the first time around - but it is not only funny, it's out-and-out hilarious. I think that there was a tendency of light films of this era to try and stretch the feel-good created by the humor to imply that all is, after all, really right with the world, something perhaps easier to believe in 1949 than in 2006. Possibly that wears thin for some, but why split hairs? In my experience, comedy is the most difficult genre for getting a consensus; many of my best friends, for instance, love Woody Allen, the very sight of whom who gives me (and many others) an almighty pain. With that in mind, the fact that everyone who has commented agrees that this movie is very funny - at least once - seems in itself quite remarkable.