Analysis on the Film "Ned Kelly" in the Subject Australian Studies

In order to present an "anti-legend" movie, there must be some basis on which to create such a movie. The current "Ned Kelly", having him portrayed as a hero must have weak areas of heroism or even the way that the story was told. There were a few aspects that could be interpreted into Ned being an anti-hero. When Ned was a young man, he attacked a Chinese person, which would imply that Ned was racist. This view is ironic as Ned was also being discriminated against because of his race. No audience would like their view of a hero being marred with such a controversial aspect as racism. Ned also stole cattle when he was a lad, which implies that our hero is a thief. His father was shipped out from Ireland to Australia as a convict. Perhaps is stealing is genetic - who and what one's father is, is important for the viewers to determine one's credibility. Ned's whole family was renowned for stealing, and sources (see website one) state that "Going bush to avoid prosecution was a common practice." This is not the type of 'hero' Australia should be aspiring to.…