Despite a hiccup with “Assassin’s Creed,” Justin Kurzel is thought of as one of the better filmmakers working today, particularly with his films such as “Snowtown” and “Macbeth.” And judging by the new trailer for the upcoming film, “True History of the Kelly Gang,” it appears that Kurzel is going to rebound nicely from his oft-maligned video game adaptation.
“True History of the Kelly Gang” stars George MacKay, Russell Crowe, Nicholas Hoult, Essie Davis, Thomasin McKenzie, and Charlie Hunnam. ‘Kelly Gang’ is directed by Kurzel and written by Shaun Grant, who adapted the novel by Peter Carey.
In our review from last year’s TIFF, we said, “Justin Kurzel’s new film adaptation depicts the robber, raider, cop-killer, and general hellraiser in all the outlaw glory that posterity has assigned him. Kurzel’s prismatic view of Kelly’s life and times goes to gnarlier and more vivid places than superficially similar period pieces.”
“True History of the Kelly Gang” arrives in select theaters on April 24 before rolling out to more locations around the country. Of course, this is all contingent on the state of the world at that time, as this might become another film that gets delayed due to coronavirus.
Here’s the synopsis:
Set amidst the grueling badlands of 19th-century Australia, legendary outlaw Ned Kelly (George MacKay, 1917, Ophelia) grows up under the bloody and uncompromising rule of the English. Food is scarce, survival is filled with daily strife, and every opportunity the colonizers take to make their victims feel powerless is inflicted with searing brutality. In a desperate attempt to prime him for rebellion, Ned Kelly’s mother (Essie Davis, The Babadook), sells him off into the hands of the notorious bushranger Harry Power (Russel Crowe, Cinderella Man, L.A. Confidential), where the young bandit discovers he comes from a line of warriors called the Sons of Sieve. Fueled by his roots and a voracious appetite for revenge, Ned Kelly leads an anarchist army to wreak havoc on their oppressors in one of the most audacious attacks the country has ever seen.