'The frontier outlaws of Australia and America have a long and storied relationship
with cinema. Two of the most recent cinematic adaptations of these legends, Ned
Kelly and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, act as
excellent entry points into an exploration of this subject. By comparing the narrative
structures of the two films in relation to the concept of 'the Outlaw Legend' and by
highlighting the two films' respective positionings of the spectator - as filtered by
concepts of national identity - an insight into the interwoven elements of man, myth
and movie becomes apparent.' (Editor's abstract)