''Neo Ned'' is a 2005 American film starring

Jeremy Renner Jeremy Lee Renner (born January 7, 1971) is an American actor. He began his career by appearing in independent films such as ''Dahmer (film), Dahmer'' (2002) and ''Neo Ned'' (2005), then supporting roles in bigger films, such as ''S.W.A.T. (20 ...

Gabrielle Union Gabrielle Monique Union-Wade ( Union; born October 29, 1972) is an American actress. Her career began in the 1990s, when she made dozens of appearances on television sitcoms, prior to landing supporting roles in 1999 teen films '' She's All That ...

Sally Kirkland Sally Kirkland Jr. (born October 31, 1941) is an American actress and producer. A former member of Andy Warhol's The Factory and an active member in 1960s New York avant-garde theater, she has appeared in more than 250 film and television produ ...

Cary Elwes Ivan Simon Cary Elwes (; born 26 October 1962) is an English actor. He starred as Westley in ''The Princess Bride (film), The Princess Bride'' (1987), and also had lead roles in films such as ''Robin Hood: Men in Tights'' (1993) and the Saw (fr ...

Eddie Kaye Thomas Eddie Kaye Thomas (born Edward Kovelsky; October 31, 1980) is an American actor. In film, Thomas rose to prominence for his lead role as Paul Finch in the ''American Pie'' film series (1999–2012). He had a supporting role as Andy Rosenberg ...

, and

Ethan Suplee Ethan L. Suplee (; born May 25, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the films ''American History X'', '' Blow'', ''Remember the Titans'', ''John Q'', '' The Wolf of Wall Street'', '' Cold Mountain'', '' Without a Paddle ...

. It was written by Tim Boughn and directed by Van Fischer.

Synopsis

The film stars Jeremy Renner as Ned Nelson, a

white power skinhead White power skinheads, also known as racist skinheads and neo-Nazi skinheads, are members of a neo-Nazi, music of white skin head white supremacist and antisemitic offshoot of the skinhead subculture. Many of them are affiliated with white natio ...

who ends up in a mental institution where he meets Rachael (

), a black woman claiming to be the

reincarnation Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the Philosophy, philosophical or Religion, religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new lifespan (disambiguation), lifespan in a different physical ...

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

. The unlikely couple's

hookup Hook-up has several meanings: * Making a connection between components in a system ** An electrical connector ** A connection to water, sewer, or electrical utilities at a campsite * Meet up, or making a connection between people ** Slang term fo ...

leads them down a shocking road to recovery.

Cast

as Ned Nelson *

as Rachael *

as Shelly Nelson *

as Dr. Magnuson *

as Joey *

as Orderly Johnny *

Giuseppe Andrews Joey Murcia Jr. (born April 25, 1979), known professionally as Giuseppe Andrews, is an American former actor, filmmaker, and musician. Known for directing and producing multiple avant-garde films, which commonly featured trailer parks and th ...

as Josh *

Steve Railsback Steve Railsback (born November 16, 1945) is an American theatre, film, and television actor. He is best known for his performances in the films '' The Stunt Man'' and ''Lifeforce'', and his portrayal of Charles Manson in the 1976 television mini- ...

as Mr. Day *

Richard Riehle Richard Riehle (born May 12, 1948) is an American character actor. A prolific performer, he has appeared in over four hundred films, television shows and other projects, making him one of the most-credited live action performers. Life and career ...

as Officer Roy Pendleton *

Michael Shamus Wiles Michael Shamus Wiles (born October 27, 1955) is an American character actor of film and television onscreen since the 1980s who has appeared in over 100 films and television shows. Early life Wiles was born in Everett, Washington, and raised in ...

as Lou "Luke" Nelson / Ned's Dad *

Anthony Morgann Anthony, also spelled Antony, is a masculine given name derived from the ''Antonii'', a ''gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants ...

as Social Worker

Reception

Mark Olsen gave the film 3.5 out of five in his ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' review, where he wrote, "It's a little rough around the edges, to be sure, but with such strong lead performances there is something irresistible in the film's audaciously straight-faced portrayal of such an unlikely relationship." ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' reviewer John Anderson also reviewed the film favorably, writing, "Neo Ned may be ludicrous on paper, but it has what fans of independent film are looking for -- atmosphere, humanity and just a dash of fantastic drama." ''

Film Threat ''Film Threat'' is an American online film review publication, and earlier, a national magazine that focused primarily on independent film, although it also reviewed videos and DVDs of mainstream films, as well as Hollywood movies in theaters. ...

'' writer Mark Bell gave the film 4.5 out of 5, writing, "Never boring, never pretentious, never preachy, Neo Ned could find its place alongside some of the great independent romance films of all time, if enough people are able to catch a glimpse of it." The film's treatment of its subject matter and tone was criticized, with Jasmyne Keimig writing that "The disgust over Neo Ned is rightfully deserved. The movie carelessly throws around the n-word and other acts of violence for humor" and ''

L.A. Weekly ''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. The paper covers music, arts, film, theater, culture, and other local news in the Los Angeles area. ''LA Weekly'' was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin (among others), ...

'' writer Matthew Duersten stating, "The problem lies in the film's inability to decide whether such loaded images are funny in a

Farrelly Brothers Peter Farrelly and Bobby Farrelly, collectively referred to as the Farrelly brothers, are American screenwriters and directors. They have made eleven films together, mostly comedies, including '' Dumb and Dumber'' and ''There's Something About Ma ...

/ Dave Chapelle kind of way or if they mean something deeper." Gabrielle Union expressed dissatisfaction with her performance in this film over

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

Awards

To date, the film has won 10 film awards, out of 10 total nominations.

2005

;

Slamdance Film Festival The Slamdance Film Festival is an annual film festival focused on emerging artists. The annual week-long festival is held in Los Angeles in late February and is the main event organized by the year-round Slamdance organization. The organization ...

*Best Narrative Feature

2006

;

Ashland Independent Film Festival The Ashland Independent Film Festival is held in Ashland, Oregon, United States, and has been organized by the non-profit Southern Oregon Film Society since 2001. Founded by D.W. and Steve Wood, the festival is held each spring over five days at t ...

*Best Feature Film ;

Newport Beach Film Festival The Newport Beach Film Festival (NBFF) is an annual film festival in Newport Beach, California, typically held in late April. In 2022, it was announced that the festival had permanently changed its date to be held in October, as the festival bega ...

*Outstanding Achievement in Directing, Van Fischer ;

Palm Beach International Film Festival The Palm Beach International Film Festival was a film festival in the United States held in Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm ...

*Best Actor, Jeremy Renner *Best Actress, Gabrielle Union *Best Director, Van Fischer *Best Feature ;

San Diego Film Festival The San Diego International Film Festival is an independent film festival held in San Diego, California, produced by the nonprofit San Diego Film Foundation. The main event has traditionally been held annually in autumn at venues in the Gaslamp Q ...

* Best Screenplay - Tim Boughn * Audience Award - Best Narrative Feature ;

Sarasota Film Festival The Sarasota Film Festival is a film festival located in Sarasota, Florida and held in April. Its mission is "to celebrate the art of filmmaking and the contribution of filmmakers by hosting an international film festival and developing year-long ...

*Best Narrative Feature

Film release

After three years of festival screenings (from 2005's

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Enterprises. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. The festival ...

premiere to 2008's Suppository Films Reelblack Festival), the film premiered on

Starz Starz (stylized in all caps as STARZ; pronounced "stars") is an American pay television network owned by Starz Entertainment, and is the flagship property of Starz Inc. Launched in 1994 as a multiplex service of what is now Starz Encore, ...

on August 19, 2008. It was picked up for distribution by

CodeBlack Entertainment Codeblack Films is an American entertainment company. Codeblack focuses on films targeting African-American audiences. History Codeblack Enterprises was founded by Jeff Clanagan in 2005, who became CEO of the company. Originally focused on dire ...

, which released the film on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

on December 2, 2008.

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0364556, Neo Ned American independent films Films about race and ethnicity 2005 films Films about racism in the United States Films about interracial romance 2000s English-language films Skinhead films 2000s gang films 2005 independent films 2000s American films English-language independent films English-language crime films