Most American audiences won’t know the name Kneecap or if the movie hitting theaters this week is a true story or just a colorful movie put up to entertain them. But after watching Kneecap, they’re going to walk away with an introduction to the band, the resistance movement in Ireland, the fight to keep Gaelic as a recognized language, and the civil rights issues that the native language speakers endure.
Kneecap tells the story of the band of the same name and their origins. From the two young adult men who were in and out of trouble with the law and the high school music teacher, they befriend and become their third band member. The three take the poetry and lyrics written in their native tongue and turn them into an unlikely voice for the resistance, with drugs fueling them along the way.
While Kneecap may seem like an unlikely inspiration for the resistance movement, the movie is incredibly inspirational. The music, the moment in history, and everything come together into a movie that is almost irresistible to stop watching. The use of Gaelic in the film does mean you have to watch and read subtitles through parts of it, but it adds to the experience. As an added bonus, the original band members are portraying themselves, which probably leaves some of the creative license and acting on the cutting room floor.

While the logline for Kneecap doesn’t seem to do the movie justice, the trailer may pull in some more audiences. It’s an interesting story, one that builds on real-life turmoil and political unrest. It’s inspirational, funny, and irreverent at the same time. The story will pull you in, and the contrasting color play of the cinematography will keep your interest. The only problem with the movie is that it may not have the audience pull that it deserves. Even if you don’t know who Kneecap is, you will be looking them up and their music after the movie ends.
Kneecap is in theaters everywhere this weekend.
Overall Rating
About Kneecap
When fate brings Belfast schoolteacher JJ into the orbit of self-confessed ‘low life scum’ Naoise & Liam Og, the needs drops on a hip hop act like no other. Rapping in their native Irish language, KNEECAP fast become the unlikely figureheads of a Civil Rights movement to save their mother tongue. But the trio must first overcome police, paramilitaries & politicians trying to silence their defiant sound – whilst their anarchic approach to life often makes them their own worst enemies. In this fiercely original sex, drugs and hip-hop biopic KNEECAP play themselves, laying down a global rallying cry for the defense of native cultures.
Starring Naoise Ó Cairealláin “Móglaí Bap”, Liam Óg Ó Hannaidh “Mo Chara”, JJ Ó Dochartaigh “Dj Provaí”, Josie Walker, Fionnuala Flaherty, Jessica Reynolds, Adam Best, with Simone Kirby and Michael Fassbender
Written and Directed by Rich Peppiatt