B for Bad, B for Bogus and B for Bold: Rupert Kathner, The Glenrowan Affair and Ned Kelly

The recent attention given to American B movies tends to overlook Australia's own industry of Badness. For devotees of Bad cinema, The Glenrowan Affair (Rupert Kathner, 1951) is a true gem. Based on the exploits of bushranger Ned Kelly, and promoted as a "serious drama," Eric Reade laughed, "if the picture had been billed as a comedy it would have done better business." To investigate why The Glenrowan Affair is so utterly, terribly and awfully Bad, this paper will discuss its relationship with the industry of Kelly cinema, as well as Kathner's oeuvre, which has recently inspired the docudrama Hunt Angels (Alec Morgan, 2006).