Mullan has provided us with 2 excellent films in Orphans and the Magdalene Sisters but NEDS is disappointing in the extreme. I went to the cinema expecting a hard-hitting, funny and accurate portrayal of school and life in the 1970s in Glasgow. There were some funny moments and some brutal moments but the major letdown of NEDS....was the story. Were we really to accept that a young, quiet, bookish lad who excels at Latin and at school in general turns into a knife-wielding thug within the space of 4-5 weeks in the school holidays because his friend's mum takes a dislike to him? We also get very little character development for many of the characters. Mullan plays the typical Glaswegian drunk father but Mullan the director never takes the time to give us a clue why he has become a menacing lush. (You people in Glasgow in the audience who laughed at the father's drunken abuse of the mother -shame on you as this was not funny nor was it intended to be.) The film has been commended for its attention to detail and portrayal of Glasgow in the 1970s. I'm sure some of the detail was right for a Glasgow seen through Mullan's eyes but in no other school did teachers smoke in the classroom. I think a bit of fanciful mis-remembering is going on there. The feel of the 1970s didn't come across and at one point the main character 'John' calls himself a 'ned' - not a term used by ordinary people at that time. I agree with one of the early reviews that at 2 hours, the film is far too long.
Review of Neds
