"True History of the Kelly Gang" offers own brutish, anarchic style for a fresh take

True History of the Kelly Gang (2020)

Legendary bushranger Ned Kelly has been a subject taken to the screen so frequently that “True History of the Kelly Gang” actually finds its own anarchic style to match the antiheroic ethos. Adapted by screenwriter Shaun Grant from Peter Carey’s fictionalized 2001 book loosely based on Kelly’s life, this reinterpretation is less dull and rigid than it sounds, rendered fresh and alive by director Justin Kurzel’s (2016’s “Assassin’s Creed”) myth-making, punk-rock sensibility.

Off the top, “True History of the Kelly Gang” assures the viewer that nothing we are about to see is true. From childhood to hanging at age 25 in the badlands of 19th-century Australia, the film depicts the mythos of legendary bushranger Ned Kelly (George MacKay) and his merry men. At 12 years old, Ned (Orlando Schwerdt) would catch his mother (Essie Davis) prostituting herself while he would feed his family by bringing home a cow leg. After the death of his father, Ned was sold by his mother to the notorious outlaw Harry Power (Russell Crowe) in order to learn how to shoot and steal. Once Ned grows up to understand a system of injustice, he is triggered by Constable Fitzpatrick (Nicholas Hoult) and channels that rage for an uprising with his gang of pals who would cross-dress to make their enemies think they were insane.

What is the truth and what is fiction are beside the point because director Justin Kurzel does tell an absorbing saga. Not alive yet when Mick Jagger portrayed Ned Kelly in 1970 (followed by a 2003 interpretation with Heath Ledger in the titular role), a sinewy George MacKay (2019’s “1917”) is electric in blurring the line between hero and villain. Kurzel has also amassed a top-notch supporting cast—Russell Crowe, Charlie Hunnam, Thomasin McKenzie, Nicholas Hoult, and Essie Davis (Kurzel’s wife)—and pulls bold, showy performances from them. It’s also something to hear a filthy Crowe say, “Shoot his cock off!” What it sometimes lacks in depth, “True History of the Kelly Gang” is grim, brutish, and revels in the blood and muck. 

Grade: B -

IFC is releasing “True History of the Kelly Gang” (124 min.) to video on demand and digital platforms on May 8, 2020.