Apparently, I'm just not up on my Australian history, because I have to confess that until I saw this movie I knew nothing about Ned Kelly. After watching, while I definitely know more than I did, I'm not convinced that I know his full story. The story presented here, while entertaining, is very one-sided in its view of history. It leaves us no doubt that Ned and his gang were the good guys and everyone against them was bad. And whenever someone goes on about the purely good versus the completely wicked evildoers, I know that I'm not getting the full story. However, this didn't prevent me from enjoying this Australian Western, thanks in large part to its leads, Heath Ledger and Orlando Bloom.
The plot revolves around the Kelly family. Ned (Ledger) is the son of a deported Irish convict. At the beginning of the movie Ned is falsely arrested for stealing a horse and sent to prison for three years, thus starting the animosity between his family and the British police that will last throughout the film.
Upon his release from prison, Ned tries to remain upon the straight and narrow path, but when a local constable becomes attracted to Ned's sister, trouble rears its ugly head once again. The policeman, after being humiliated at the Kelly house when he comes to see Ned's sister, tells everyone that Ned shot at him. Despite the obvious lie (Ned wasn't even home during the incident), Ned and his friend Joe (Bloom) decide to hide out until the whole business is forgotten.
In an effort to get Kelly to turn himself in, the police arrest Kelly's mother and many of his friends. After a gun battle during which Ned shoots two policemen, he knows that turning himself in would be as good as committing suicide. Instead, he becomes the outlaw that the law has already made him out to be. He robs several banks, gaining popularity from the masses that cheer his disregard of the ruling classes' authority.
Wishing to stamp out the outlaw and his gang before it can turn into a revolution, the British government issues a huge reward for their capture and Queen Victoria signs a law stating that anyone who sees Ned or his gang, may shoot them on sight with no questions asked. A large army of policemen is also gathered together and sent after the small group of outlaws. In some ways, the story is reminiscent of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Two outlaws being chased across the country by their pursuers. How it differs is in its mood. Butch and Sundance was lighthearted and humorous at times, while Ned Kelly only occasionally shows a spark of humor. Ledger and Bloom, both good actors, also lack the chemistry of Redford and Newman.
Apart from Bloom and Ledger, the rest of the cast is vastly underused. Both Naomi Watts and Geoffrey Rush have very small parts with very little character development. Almost anyone could have played his or her part.
In the end, Ned Kelly is an entertaining, action-adventure, but that is all. If it were filmed more as a fantasy adventure, a sort of Australian Robin Hood, then the one-sided nature of its story would have worked. But since it is filmed with a somber tone and in a realistic manner, it begs for deeper answers, but never provides them.
