''The Craic'' (stylised as ''The Craíc'') is a 1999 Australian

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

starring

stand-up Stand-up comedy is a comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of one-liners, stories, ...

comedian

Jimeoin James Eoin Stephen Paul McKeown (born 24 January 1966), better known as Jimeoin (pronounced "Jim Owen"), is an English-born Irish comedian and actor. Jimeoin rose to prominence in the early 1990s in Australia, where he had his own TV show and ...

with Alan McKee, directed by

Ted Emery Ted Emery is an Australian film and television director and producer. Ted Emery served in the Royal Australian Navy during the Vietnam War. After returning to Australia, he joined the ABC in Melbourne, Australia, and in time became a director and ...

Plot

It is 1988, and two best friends from Ireland—Fergus Montagu (Jimeoin) and Wesley Murray (McKee)—flee from

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

after a violent confrontation with Colin (Robert Morgan) of the

IRA Ira or IRA may refer to: *Ira (name), a Hebrew, Sanskrit, Russian or Finnish language personal name *Ira (surname), a rare Estonian and some other language family name *Iran, UNDP code IRA Law *Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, US, on status of ...

and illegally enter

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, finding seasonal work picking fruit at

orchards An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of lar ...

to afford

hostels A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared ...

, sustenance and booze costs (but so cash-strapped, their

whiskey and coke Whiskey and Coke is a highball cocktail made by mixing whiskey, typically bourbon or Tennessee whiskey, with Coca-Cola or other colas. A popular version of the drink is Jack and Coke (also referred to as JD and Coke or Jack Coke), where the Jac ...

s are made by taking swigs of

whiskey Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden ...

and coke, mixing the two on the fly in their mouth), the last often used to dull the two's fear of

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

officers. After some gentle persuasion, Fergus goes on a TV dating game show and wins a trip to

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. This, however, occurs just as the pair's apartment is raided by immigration officer Derek Johnson (Nicolas Bell), and Wesley is forced to escape, eventually reuniting with his friend in Queensland. Meanwhile, Colin is sent to Australia in a

witness protection program Witness protection is security provided to a threatened person providing testimonial evidence to the justice system, including defendants and other clients, before, during, and after a trial, usually by police. While a witness may only require p ...

after he gives up some of his former colleagues, and (much to the skepticism of his watchers, the S.A.S.) names Fergus and Wesley as terrorists. Irritated by their lack of progress, he eventually takes off to find them himself. The two make their way up the coast and become acquainted with backpackers Alice ( Jane Hall) and Erica (played by Catherine Arena, Jimeoin's real-life wife) along the way. After their car overheats and explodes in the outback, the duo narrowly evade Colin, who has finally caught up with them. With the help of a local who calls himself Ron Barassi (Kyle Morrison) the duo make their way to a pub where immigration, the S.A.S. and a police force who discovered their burnt-out car and Colin have all arrived at. As the duo are being carted away, Colin shoots out the windows of the police car and the duo escape once more, running off into the sunset.

Reception

In a review in the long-running SBS Australian TV program, ''

The Movie Show ''The Movie Show'' is an Australian film review program which was broadcast on SBS TV. Its history is divided into three parts, until it finally wound up in 2008. History The original format, which ran from 30 October 1986 to 12 May 2004, had ...

'', cinema critic

David Stratton David James Stratton (born 10 September 1939) is an English-Australian award-winning film critic, as both a journalist and interviewer, film historian and lecturer and television personality and producer. Life and career Born in Trowbridge, ...

described the film as an only intermittently funny

road movie A road movie is a film genre in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the theme of alienatio ...

Margaret Pomeranz Margaret Pomeranz (born 14 July 1944) is an Australian film critic, writer, producer and television personality. Early life Pomeranz was born Margeret Anne Jones-Owen on 14 July 1944 in Waverley, a suburb of Sydney. She was educated at the P ...

agreed, finding the script underdeveloped, and the film itself "good-natured but really incredibly mundane". Long running websit
efilmcritic.com
s reviewer "Filmink Magazine (owes us money)" says "''Jimeoin's challenged himself with a film and come off pretty well.''" and that "''With a healthy measure of eighties nostalgia and a neat storyline, The Craic avoids falling into the trap of seeming like series of sketches pasted together.''", talking of course about Jimeoin's roots as a

stand-up comic Stand-up comedy is a comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of one-liners, stories, ...

and a

TV comedy Television comedy is a category of broadcasting that has been present since the early days of entertainment media. While there are several genres of comedy, some of the first ones aired were variety shows. One of the first United States television ...

star of his show

before this film was developed and released, his second film and first

Lead role A leading actor, leading actress, or simply lead (), plays the role of the protagonist of a film, television show or play. The word ''lead'' may also refer to the largest role in the piece, and ''leading actor'' may refer to a person who typic ...

Box office

''The Craic'' grossed $5,265,935 at the box office in Australia. It took almost $2 million during its first week in cinemas, placing it in the same opening league as acclaimed Australian films such as ''

Muriel's Wedding ''Muriel's Wedding'' is a 1994 Australian comedy-drama film written and directed by P.J. Hogan. The film, which stars Toni Collette, Rachel Griffiths, Jeanie Drynan, Sophie Lee, and Bill Hunter, focuses on the socially awkward Muriel whose ambi ...

'' and '' The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert''. The average budget for films that year was $3,100,000 (according to the Australian Film Commission's Box Office Share report).''Australian Film Commission – Australian Films – 1999 box office share''
/ref>

References

External links

The Craic
at the

National Film and Sound Archive The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national co ...

* *
The Craic
' on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

The Craic
at Oz Movies {{DEFAULTSORT:Craic, The 1999 films 1999 comedy films 1990s English-language films Australian comedy films Films about illegal immigration Films about the Irish Republican Army Films about witness protection Films set in 1988 Films shot in Melbourne