If you typically only read the music-focused articles on this website, I desperately hope you’re reading this review. That’s because Kneecap — a raucous, exuberant, and poignant depiction of the young Irish rap group of the same name, starring the three musicians as themselves — is a testament to the political and cultural power of music. I don’t know if every single piece of their story as depicted here is 100% accurate, but I’d be shocked if any large chunks of it were fabricated in any way that would sabotage the film’s message. I base this assumption on the musicians’ involvement, director Rich Peppiatt’s clear love for and appreciation of the group (as evidenced in several interviews and his directing the music video for their single “Guilty Conscience”), and a photo/video montage late in the film which confirms that a few key scenes did actually happen as portrayed.
Okay, enough with the qualifiers. This movie is simply superb. It aces every test as far as the group’s acting ability (Peppiatt and the boys bonded over a six-month acting course before shooting) and their political messaging, and it crucially avoids airbrushing the rough edges of their lives while never coming across as dour or saccharine. Somehow, almost through sheer force of will, Kneecap unforgettably balances entertainment with education, empathy, and prayers for solidarity.
As told in the film, Liam Óg “Mo Chara” Ó Hannaidh and Naoise “Móglaí Bap” Ó Cairealláin were childhood friends long before their lives took a turn for the worse. This turn is due in large part to the intergenerational trauma and socioeconomic impact of The Troubles, the decades-long conflict over British rule of Northern Ireland. Liam and Naoise’s millennial Northern Irish generation are now referred to as the “ceasefire babies.” The film depicts Naoise’s father Arlo (Michael Fassbender) as a wanted radical whose off-the-grid lifestyle (many people wonder whether he is alive or dead) certainly hasn’t helped the boys’ situation.
As young adults, Liam and Naoise become druggies and drug dealers. If those realities hamper your interest in their story, this is definitely not the film for you. In addition to all the heft of the narrative, Peppiatt and his crew manage to craft some of the funniest and most innovative drug trip sequences ever made, none of which go on too long or serve to squander the film’s most important takeaways. These scenes are just a few examples of Peppiatt’s passion and the trio’s comfort with controversy. That comfort is evidenced through smaller choices as well, such as the use of The Prodigy’s still-debated 1997 hit “Smack My Bitch Up” during a hilarious chase sequence.
If you noticed a commitment to the Irish language in Liam and Naoise’s stage names, that’s kind of the point. Along with schoolteacher JJ Ó Dochartaigh, now their masked DJ: “DJ Próvaí” (a play on an Irish word which refers to an extremist faction of the Irish Republican Army), they see enormous cultural value in using the Irish language in their tracks, as it was not made legal in Northern Ireland until 2022. As cultural figureheads, the trio clearly had a hand in that change. The film embodies a discourse about how the use of one’s own language denotes dignity and self-determination.
As I alluded to earlier, one of the most important tests the movie passes is in its bold choice to cast the trio as themselves. All three of them are beyond solid, but Ó Dochartaigh in particular comes across like he’s been acting on film all his life. The Irish veteran Fassbender is certainly the icing on the cake, but wisely on the filmmakers’ part, he’s never made the main course. Whether everything said here about Naoise’s father is true or not is irrelevant in the grand scheme of things, because Fassbender acts as the perfect anchor to the past; the embodiment of the conflict between past prejudices and future freedom.
That youthful, often bawdy voice for freedom and peace is what this movie exists to serve. It serves the need for worldwide solidarity in the darkest of times. However, if any of that makes it sound like this film will be preaching at you for its entire runtime, rest assured, there’s plenty of sex, drugs, and hip-hop to go around. | George Napper
