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Neo Ned

“Neo Ned” is a neo-Nazi driven drama about self discovery and racism. Although others, such as “American History X” and “The Believer,” are more powerful films, “Neo Ned” takes a lighter approach to the subject, or as light as you can when racism, violence, and hate is involved. The film is strangely quirky rather than heavy. Some may feel uncomfortable with this, thinking the subject shouldn’t be in any context other than a very serious one. The film presents a number of serious issues and it really doesn’t take any of them lightly. It goes about them in a different way that may seem a bit bizarre at first, but is actually extremely refreshing.

Ned Nelson (Jeremy Renner) is a neo-Nazi skinhead, a member of the brotherhood. However, being a part of this very brotherhood landed him into an insane asylum where he is currently detained. He played a part in the murder of a black man and landed in the asylum instead of jail. This asylum is where he meets Rachael (Gabrielle Union), a black woman who thinks she has the soul of Adolf Hitler inside of her. She randomly screams out German orders, but, aside from that, barely talks. Ned is somewhat baffled by Rachael and is trying to figure her out in his slightly obnoxious, but playful way. Perhaps it’s his attraction to Hitler that makes her seem more approachable than most black people he has met, but he is clearly intrigued by her. Ned spends more and more time talking to Rachael as she begins to open up to him a little bit. He realizes that although he has claimed to hate blacks, Rachael is the first that he has actually taken the time to get to know.

Soon Ned is deemed too unstable for the asylum, messing with the harmony of the institution, and is kicked out. He can’t stand the thought of being away from Rachael and breaks her out when the inmates are taken on an outing to the local zoo. Ned and Rachael find an abandoned trailer, get jobs, and begin a new life together. Things go well for awhile, until Ned gets caught up with his old life again and Rachael feels like it is time to stop playing house and go back to her 6-year-old daughter that she had to leave with her aunt.

The acting is very strong in the film and adds a certain life of its own. Jeremy Renner as Ned is extremely charismatic and you can’t help but enjoy every minute he is on screen even when you are disgusted with what comes out of his mouth. Although his character is very ignorant and offensive, he has this childlike innocence to him. He’s like a little kid who just doesn’t know better. Gabrielle Union gave a great performance as well. She really had three characters and she tackled all of them. She portrayed the angered and power driven Hitler, or the woman who had his personality stuck inside of her. Then she showed the quiet, and more weak loner. Once they got outside of the asylum, her true personality is shown, which doesn‘t seem to be crazy at all. Union brings out a caring, yet realistic individual, but one who has plenty of skeletons in her closet that she can’t hide. Union shows us a very relatable person that you can’t help but feel for. Sally Kirkland does well as Ned’s eccentric and fame driven mother too. A few smaller, but notable performances were those by Ethan Suplee as the kind orderly and Eddie Kaye Thomas as one of the slightly timid, but warm asylum patients.

There could have been a little more transition into the ending, as the final conclusion is quite different than any other part of the movie. I really liked the ending, it showed the strength in both characters. Although it wasn’t your traditional happy ending, both characters were essentially happy and got to be with the person who they cared for the most in life, even if the circumstances were tragic.

“Neo Ned” is a fresh view on the topic of racism and neo-Nazism in particular, because it takes such a different path. On paper, a relationship between a committed Neo-Nazi and a black woman who thinks she’s Hitler does seem like it could be over the top and not very believable. Director Van Fisher really did an incredible job with the film though with the help of Tim Bougn who gave him a top notch and very touching script. The story was handled just right and its difference makes it stand out. It’s very fitting that Ned should be this dangerously likeable, naïve person. Through his interactions with Rachael he grows. This really speaks to racism being ignorance and a lack of knowledge.

Ned adapted this way of thinking in the first place, not because he had any reason to hate any of these races or religions that he does, but because it gave him brothers. He has never really had a steady family. His father, who Ned was extremely fond of, was imprisoned when Ned was still very young. His mother cared about him, but wasn’t the most dependable or stable person. He stayed with a foster family for awhile that ended up committing suicide, nearly taking him with them. Nazism seemed like an adaptable lifestyle that would give him the family he always yearned for. However, when Rachael became his family he suddenly had everything he was looking for. Another thing that helps “Neo Ned” stand out from other similar films is that it isn’t just a Neo-Nazi movie or film on race. “Neo Ned” doesn’t define itself by just one thing and is composed of many different tones throughout the film. It’s a film that tackles issues of race, hate, and misunderstandings. It shows growth and the power of connecting with another person that is not as different from you as they seem. However, it’s also a strong romance movie as well as a dysfunctional family drama. “Neo Ned” doesn’t limit itself and covers a wide variety of material with an ironically care free mentality.

Written by: Kelsey Zukowski

Reviewers Rating: 8
Reader's Rating: 10.00
Reader's Votes: 1

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