Wow! Such a good movie.

just watch it!

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Blistering performances.

I was really impressed with this movie; particularly the performance of Jeremy Renner. It's an incredibly sad and strikingly true story that broke my heart, but I absolutely loved it. Ned has a sad innocence juxtaposed with his explosive but upbeat personality that is mesmerizing. There are a lot of incredible stories out there about unlikely heroes from broken backgrounds and Ned is a classic example. Worn down by the system and never shown a normal example of a family or life, Ned's violent tendencies are truly a product of his reaction to a destructive universe. At the end when his mother speaks of his 'heart of gold', you realize that she isn't mistaken. He isn't exactly a hero, but did the best he could with his given situation and history.I was fascinated and impressed with both Renner and Union, as they both had tragic histories and longed for something happy.. Awesome, awesome, awesome... if you can handle it. This movie is definitely for people who don't mind a bittersweet story. Beautifully acted and directed.

I just saw this movie at the San Diego Film Festival. I had some reservations about the premise - a love story between a Neo-Nazi and an African American.But we quickly discover that Ned -the "Neo Nazi" - is really just a very simple and childlike person with a great need to be part of a group.They did a good job of making the main characters multidimensional and "likeable".There seem to be a few technical glitches in the first five minutes of the film, and there is also a small 10/15 minute lull in the middle of the piece - but a small price to pay for a solid film.Overall, I thought the writing, acting and directing were great.

Tim Boughn's script for "Neo Ned" won Slamdance's screen writing award, and after four years of mostly looking for money, Van Fischer has directed an enchanting – yes, enchanting – film about a Neo-Nazi's romance at a mental hospital with a black woman who thinks she's Hitler. Jeremy Renner and Gabrielle Union give us terrific performances. Renner took a goofy, naive, offbeat approach to this violent character, and Union underplays to great affect. The movie has attracted distributors whose superiors are squeamish about finding an audience. The filmmakers are building their case, though, by winning audience awards left and right. Interestingly, they've also realized they need to give a better, truer feel for their film in festival programs, which have been frightening people off with the Neo-Nazi photo and language. Post on this message board to let distributors know of your interest.

I didn't have the opportunity to stick around and see some of the other festival entries (many of which seemed interesting), but I'm glad to have been able to see Neo Ned. Thoughtful, creative storytelling shot in a simple style (probably due to a low budget). Excellent acting all around, especially by Mr. Renner. He seems to have a lot of potential (his energy reminds me of Sean Penn), and I'd love to see him in a similar role in a big-budget feature. I'm looking forward to seeing more from Tim Boughn (screenwriter). He's crafted an impressive, fresh story and I believe he's the real star of this film. As a writer, I believe that it's crucial to know your subject, and these characters and their situations were totally convincing.