Ned Kelly

Before viewing Ned Kelly, my only knowledge of this Australian outlaw was that he wore a bucket on his head. Having now seen this fairly enjoyable movie about his struggle for justice in the outback, I am a little bit more clued up; but I do have to ask how much fiction has replaced fact in this telling of the legend of Ned Kelly. Was he really so righteous, or have facts been changed to make the character more sympathetic and appealing to the audience?

Director Gregor Jordan works well with the questionably accurate script, getting good performances from his lead Heath Ledger, who impresses with his portrayal of a man fighting the system the only way he knows how. Also worthy of mention is Orlando Bloom as Ned's friend Joseph and Geoffrey Rush as top cop Francis Hare. Naomi Watts, however, is wasted as Ned's piece of posh totty in an unnecessary romantic sub-plot.

Whilst the movie never bores, it never really excels either, leaving this reviewer feeling rather apathetic towards it, hence my just-slightly-above-average rating of 6/10.

Based on the famous novel 'Our Sunshine', 'Ned Kelly' is a watchable film. The problem is the way the story is told. There have been quite a number of films based on heroic legends. Sadly, this one is no different and almost every moment of it is downright predictable.

The strength lies in the portrayal of the characters. Kelly and his gang are portrayed as human beings rather than the typical ruthless heroes suffering from affective flattening. On the other hand, the screenplay is so fast paced that one wonders whether Jordan really rushed through it as 'Ned Kelly' certainly would have benefited more if the script was better developed (e.g. Julia Cook could have used more scenes). As a result the film looks more like a brief summary of Kelly's life. We don't even see the trial and execution of Ned Kelly.

In the technical department, the cinematography, background score and beautiful locations deserve mention as they certainly add to the film's quality. There are some beautiful shots of the Australian landscape and the set design and few songs do give a feel of the time.

Heath Ledger is adequate in the title role but it is Orlando Bloom who steals the show. The guy seems to be in complete form (unlike his awkward presence in films like 'Kingdom of Heaven') and does full justice to the part. Naomi Watts shines in a small role. Geoffrey Rush deserved a better part but the actor nonetheless stands out. Most of the supporting cast do well. However, some of the villainous corrupt cops come across as caricatures.

Finally, Jordan's 'Ned Kelly' just doesn't do full justice in portraying Kelly's life. It ends up being a clichéd film and a mere summary of the legend. If one has nothing else to do, they might want to check 'Ned Kelly' out just to kill time but if one wants to learn about the legend, then this isn't the best source.

I walked into this movie expecting to see a legendary Australian folktale, turned into a piece of Hollywood fluff and to an extent that is what I got. However, even with the exaggerated soundtrack and the ficticious Naomi Watts character who had too large a part in the story this movie is not with out it's charms, the image of the Kelly gang in their iron suits facing an army of Victorian police at the Glenrowan Inn is an incredably striking one.

An important detail to note is that this is most definately NOT a documentary on Ned Kelly's life, this is a Hollywood film. However as a film it is incredably slanted to Ned's point of view, he is just way too good. Details of Ned's horse theivery (which he admitted to in the Jerilderie letter) where changed to make the Victorian police seem at fault. The Victorian police were made into the oppressors of the Kelly family and force Ned to a life as an outlaw in the bush.

Heath Ledger's portrayal of Ned Kelly is a fair one, he manages to depict Ned's anger at the authories rather well. Orlando Bloom's portrayal of the womanising Joe Byrne and Joel Edgerton's Aaron Sherrit, betrayer of the Kelly gang, were nowhere near Oscar worthy, but still good. Naomi Watt's character was unnecessary and seemed only added to provide a love interest for Ned.

Overall Ned Kelly is a generally good film. The acting is good, but the storyline leaves a lot to be desired, far too black and white for a film based on true events. However, the film does have it's moments, the final showdown at the Glenrowan Inn was a particulary well crafted scene. An interesting side note is that Dan Kelly's death in not actually shown, perhaps this was fuelled by the rumour that he did not perish in the Glenrowan siege but escaped and fled to a new life in Queensland.

6 of of 10

I'm tired of people judging films on their "historical accuracy". IT'S A MOVIE PEOPLE!! The writers and directors are supposed to put their own spin into the story! There are a number of movies out there that aren't entirely accurate with the history....Braveheart, Wyatt Earp, Gangs of New York, Geronimo: An American Legend, The Last of the Mohicans....all fantastic films that are mildly inaccurate historically. If you want to see a few great actors do what they do best, then I suggest you see this film and don't worry about the accuracy of the facts. Just enjoy the quality of the film, the storyline and one of the greatest actors of our time.

I'm sure that not many people outside of Australia have ever heard of the legend of Ned Kelly. I once saw a documentary about the man, but that's the only time I once saw or heard anything about him. And I guess that this might be the biggest problem this movie will have to face. No-one knows anything about it and probably not many people will care about the subject.

The movie tells the story of Ned Kelly's life. The Irish immigrant has lived in north-west Victoria all his life, but has never been very welcome by the authorities. The police always accuses him of everything they can think of and they keep harassing his family. When Kelly is fed up with the way everything goes, he forms a gang with his brother and two other men. They start robbing banks and even hijack an entire town for 3 days. All this violence leads to a man hunt organized by the police and when they kill three policemen, they are outlawed. Finally they take over a pub in Glenrowan, where they have a party with all the visitors, waiting for a train full of police to derail at a part of the track that they tore up. But the train is able to stop in time because someone warns them and what will follow is a battle on life and death between the police and the four gunmen...

It's very hard to tell whether all of what is shown in the movie is true or false. I guess nobody really knows, because there will always be two camps who will each tell their own truth: one camp says he was a hero, some kind of Robin Hood, the others will say he was an ordinary criminal, a murderer and a thief. I really couldn't tell you which of them is right, perhaps both are, but what I can tell you is that the facts in the movie as well as is the documentary were about the same.

This movie was a nice addition to the documentary I once saw and I really enjoyed the performances of all the actors. Heath Ledger, Orlando Bloom, Naomi Watts, Geoffrey Rush are all actors who are pretty well known, but even the lesser known actors show in this production that they all know what good acting should look like. I really enjoyed this movie and I give it a 7.5/10