Ned Kelly, Bushranger

That doesn't mean what you think it means. No, it doesn't mean that either.

I just saw the film Ned Kelly recently. I got the DVD on e-bay for $5, and it was worth about that. The film itself only really appeals to fans of Heath Ledger and Orlando Bloom. OK, so me anyways. The movie was about a C+, nothing superlative, but it did give one the sense that there was a bigger story here. Ned Kelly is an Australian historical figure from the Victorian age, for those who might not know.

So I hit the library. The bad news is they only had one book on Ned Kelly. The good news is it was a very good book which I believe won the Booker prize, only don't quote me on that. It's called The True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey. The further bad news is that this book, while a very good read, is a novel, a work of fiction. Just like the movie.

So I started prowling the 'net, and this is why I love the internet: there is a web space dedicated to Ned Kelly that breaks down the facts and fictions of both this novel and the movie. How helpful is that? So I've got all my Ned Kelly facts straight in my head and can go on to other things. I must recommend that book again; after reading it all I could think was, "Why wasn't this one made into a movie?" It would have been much more interesting to see.

One last creepy thing: of the four men/boys in the Kelly gang (who were only 19-25 when they died), Joe Byrne is supposedly this big ladies' men (which is why you get Orly Bloom to play him in the movie, right?). However, there is only one picture of him that keeps showing up over and over, and I'm wondering every time I see it why the only picture anyone can find of him he appears to be sleeping (eyes closed, head tilted in a really odd way). Perhaps you see where this is going, but on this Ned Kelly website I finally learn the truth: he was dead in that picture. The Victorian police propped his dead body up against a wall so journalists could take all the pictures they want. I liked it better when I assumed he was dozing off.