Other Titles • Ned Kelly • Kelly, der Bandit (1970) • Ned Kelly, Outlaw
Synopses for Ned Kelly (1970)
1.
Mick Jagger had one of his rare sizable acting roles, as the famed Australian outlaw, in this atmospheric biopic (remade in 2004 with Heath Ledger). The movie has the look and spirit of other Vietnam-era counterculture Westerns, with Irishman Ned Kelly a rebel against the unjust Establishment. Tony Richardson's direction has the free-for-all laxity of the era, though the general sense of mess is tidied up by the often stunning location photography by ace DP Gerry Fisher. What makes the film memorable is the soundtrack, a heavy portion of which is made up of Western ballads written by witty Shel Silverstein and sung by Waylon Jennings; elsewhere, the Amish-bearded Jagger croons "The Wild Colonial Boy." A charitable assessment of Jagger's performance would conclude that he brings an intriguing Pirandellian presence to the role; a more clear-eyed view would say that he simply doesn't have the acting chops to carry it off. --Robert Horton
(13 votes)
2.
A bearded Mick Jagger stars as the title character, Australia's most famous criminal, in Tony Richardson's oblique approach to the problem of Irish nationalism. The son of a man deported to Australia for stealing two pigs, Ned is unjustly imprisoned in 1868 at the age of 16. Upon returning home three years later, he finds his mother (Clarissa Kaye) affianced to horse thief George King (Bruce Barry) and his brother in jail for stealing cattle. Hoping to steer clear of further incarceration, Ned starts a sawmill. But in a bar one night, Fitzpatrick (Martyn Sanderson), a policeman--or "trap"--drugs Ned's drink and jails him for drunkenness. After being released, the resentful Kelly forms a gang to steal horses with his brothers and King, and they head for the outback. Fitzpatrick chases the criminals down but they kill him and a couple of others in an ambush. When Ned finds out that his mother has been arrested for murder on trumped-up charges, he offers to give himself up in an exchange, but the provisional governor refuses, sending Kelly and his gang off on a murderous rampage that gains him a following among the poor and downtrodden. Based on a true story, the film features excellent photography by Gerry Fisher and splendid work by Rolling Stones lead singer Jagger.
(14 votes)
3.
Unable to support his family in the Australian outback, a man turns to stealing horses in order to make money. He gets more deeply drawn into the outlaw life, and eventually becomes involved in murders. Based on the life of famed 19th-century Australian outlaw Ned Kelly.
(12 votes)
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