Kneecap: Sundance London Film Review
Kneecap won the Audience Award when it premiered at Sundance in January so it seems only right that this banger of a film opens the London edition.
Of the 80,000 native Irish speakers, 6,000 live in the North of Ireland and three of them became a rap group called Kneecap. Set in West Belfast, this semi-autobiographical film follows childhood best friends and drug dealers Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh (stage name Mo Chara) and Naoise Ó Cairealláin (Móglaí Bap) as they cross paths with school teacher JJ Ó Dochartaigh (DJ Próvaí) and form the real Irish-language hip-hop trio.
Their music is extremely controversial due to the use of profanity and drug references and their anti-British stance, and they also spark debate about whether they’re helping or hindering the campaign to get Irish recognised as an official language in Northern Ireland.
This film, written and directed by Rich Peppiatt, is wild, raucous and hilarious. It has a distinct sense of humour that I was on board with immediately; from the opening narration, I knew this film was up my alley. The trio is anarchic, provocative and anti-establishment so it is only fitting that the film mirrors that, with lots of drugs, sex, swearing, banging tunes and unusual on-screen illustrations.
It is not your average biopic but Kneecap are not average people. It’s unusual to see a biographical film about a relatively new group (they formed in 2017) that’s not that well-known outside of Northern Ireland. But you don’t have to know them to enjoy this – the film is a crime comedy that uses its tongue-in-cheek and irreverent tone to make its topics of loyalist vs republican and indigenous languages more digestible to the audience. Also, you might not be able to understand their songs (they are subtitled) but they are bangers musically.
The bandmates are so good at playing fictionalised, heightened versions of themselves that I had to double-check they weren’t professional actors. In particular, DJ Provai stands out as he is torn between his normal life as a secondary school teacher and his secret role as the balaclava-wearing DJ with ‘Brits Out’ on his buttocks. There’s some star power in the mix too with Michael Fassbender as Bap’s dad, a staunch republican who faked his own death. The fact Fassbender agreed to this speaks volumes about its quality.
Kneecap is an absolute riot. Do not miss it.
Opening Sundance London on Thursday 6th June. In cinemas from Friday 23rd August