Wild About Harry
Wild About Harry
| 31 December 2000 (USA)
Wild About Harry Trailers

A sleazy chef is forced to face the truth about the man he has become and realizes that he has the chance to begin again.

Reviews
jotix100

An Irish television chef with a great following, is going through a divorce. Harry McKee, married to Ruth for twenty five years, has found that in his celebrity status he forgot his good intentions for a good marriage and a nice family. Ruth feels betrayed by Harry's drinking and his philandering. His own children do not care for him; all they want is a quick settlement so he can be out of their lives. One night Harry, who has run out of cigarettes, goes to a convenience store and gets into a confrontation with a few rough guys. He gets kicked in the head, something that produces an injury that lands him in hospital. He falls into a coma from which he eventually wakes from. The only problem is he cannot remember much about his life with Ruth. Harry has to relearn to live with his condition, even though the divorce is still going on in the courts. Will he be able to reconcile himself with his past and mend his ways? If he wants to keep Ruth, he will do anything because he finally understands she and his family matter a lot to him.An affable comedy directed by Declan Lowney and based on the screenplay by Colin Bateman. The strong cast assembled for the film was an excuse for watching the film when it showed on television recently. The presence of Brendan Gleeson and Amanda Donohue as Harry and Ruth, worked well in this comedy. Unfortunately, the subplot involving James Nesbitt, an otherwise notable Irish actor, does not make much sense, and in a way, it is distracting.

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rocketship1701

A thoroughly enjoyable movie. OK so it was never going to win any Oscars. But it was refreshing to see a movie set in Northern Ireland which wasn't one of those American garbage productions about their romanticised view of "The Troubles". It showed normal life (within the context of the story) does happen in NI. Much more entertaining than an hour of midweek soaps. Good cast, good laughs and a happy, feel good ending. Despite the occasionally wavering accents there were fine performances from Brendan Gleeson and Amanda Donohoe. Also another fine turn from James Nesbitt and Adrian Dunbar, particularly the latter's concern for his sexual preference possibly being made public in very conservative NI. Worth a watch of an evening. Maybe with a pizza and some beers.

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smithers-5

Black comedy about a hard-drinking/smoking/womanising Irish TV chef who loses his memory when on the brink of divorce. Harry is a mix of male TV chefs from Graham Kerr to Keith Floyd and looks a hell of a lot like Patrick, the Irish Anglia TV chef.This is a well-constructed film, funny without being hilarious, moving without being too syrupy.Brendan Gleeson play this part so well that it's hard to imagine anyone else doing it.Amanda Donahoe is excellent in a different role for her.George Wendt as a TV producer is George Wendt - a delight to watch (please can we see more of him).Nothing groundbreaking, just good entertainment.

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pbarnhill

What a pleasure this was. A well written, well crafted piece of black comedy which demonstrates the fact that a fine story and emotive acting can make up for a lack of big budget sets and effects. Filmed on location (with good effect) in Northern Ireland, 'Wild About Harry' tells the tale of Harry McKee, an aging lothario who combines his job as a TV chef with a life of drunken parties and seducing his female fans. As you would imagine, this does not bode well for his marriage to long suffering wife Ruth, who has set divorce proceedings in motion. Before the hearing though, Harry gets attacked by thugs and ends up in a coma.When he awakes, he has 'lost' 25 years of memory and thinks he is an 18 year old, clean living, boy with his whole life ahead of him. What follows is a keenly observed story of how life can sometimes give you a second chance to repair any mistakes you've made. 'Wild About Harry' is based on a book by superb local author Colin Bateman, and anyone who has read any of his work will know that there are plenty of colourful characters, situations and lines to enjoy. We need more films like this to refresh the soul from the usual Hollywood pap !

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