LIAM ÓG Ó HANNAIDH as Mo Chara or Liam Óg in ‘Kneecap’ (Photo by Helen Sloan. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics)
Since the Tudor Conquest of Ireland in the 16th century, English has been the primary language in Northern Ireland. The original Irish language was not only shunned but banned outright in many official capacities. A vocal minority sought to change this, arguing that it was their right to speak the language of their ancestors, and the language fight became a proxy war for other political and social issues.
This is the climate in Northern Ireland in which Kneecap takes place.
Kneecap is about a pair of childhood pals in Northern Ireland named Naoise (Naoise Ó Cairealláin) and Liam (Liam Óg Ó Hannaidh) who become drug dealers and petty criminals. When Laim gets arrested, he refuses to speak anything but Irish to the English-speaking police, so they bring in an interpreter – a schoolteacher named JJ (JJ Ó Dochartaigh).
After a bit of chaos at the police station, JJ ends up with Liam’s notebook, and notices that the young man is a poet. An aspiring (or maybe retired?) musician himself, JJ sets the verses, which are in Irish, to music. When the trio finally meets up again, Liam, Naoise, and JJ become Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap, and DJ Próvai, collectively known as Kneecap, an electrifying hip-hop group that both entertains the masses and fights for the right to speak (and rap in) their mother tongue of Irish.
Directed by Rich Peppiatt (Supershoppers), Kneecap is somewhat of a docudrama. Although some of it was most likely dramatized for the screen, the screenplay was written by Peppiatt along with the real-life hip-hop group (who play themselves in the movie). It’s a kinetic story of a music group on the rise, but it’s also a snapshot of a tumultuous time in Irish history and a gritty little coming-of-age tale. It’s essentially this generation’s Trainspotting.
From an American point-of-view, Kneecap is a fascinating look at censorship, authority, and, dare we say, fascism. It’s an in-your-face movie, but there’s a subtext that could only be interpreted (or maybe manufactured?) by Americans. The anger that is generated simply by someone not speaking the same language as someone else is relatable in a sad way.
Kneecap doesn’t cry about it, though. It points out the ridiculousness of forcing one side’s opinion on the other. The movie is, at its heart, a comedy, with a wicked sense of humor, riddled with crime and loaded with aggressive music. And it’s got a message – one about preserving culture and fighting for things that are worth fighting for.
The music of Kneecap is clearly the center of the movie. Although the group has an obvious political and social point of view, the trio uses its music to get its point across, to the extent that their fans even start learning Irish in order to further connect with the artists and their tunes. They’re using their art to promote their cause, and yeah, sometimes things get violent, but that’s hardly the point. It’s all about the music’s connection with its audience.
There are numerous subplots peppered throughout Kneecap involving missing political activists, police investigations, and even JJ’s keeping his participation in the group a secret in order to not jeopardize his teaching career (he wears a balaclava while performing to hide his identity). But the real stars are the group itself. You know you’ve got a great story when Michael Fassbender is in the movie and he isn’t the most interesting character.
An epilogue at the end of Kneecap explains that Irish was recognized again as an official language in Northern Ireland in 2022. Kneecap the band wasn’t completely responsible for this, but they sure helped get the word out and gain support among the younger crowds. And Kneecap the movie is helping to raise awareness of the situation with the rest of the world. Kneecap the movie is not only entertaining, it’s socially aware.
GRADE: B+
Running Time: 105 minutes
Release Date: August 2, 2024
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
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