Kneecap Movie Review (2024)
A high-energy comedy about the rise of an Irish-language rap trio, Kneecap is as visually inventive and unexpectedly heartfelt as it is full of infectious music.
Musical movies are a huge thing for me. I love a proshot like Come From Away and Waitress: The Musical, but I’m also here for straight-up documentaries like the Indigo Girls’ It’s Only Life After All or a mockumentary like The Moment. They’re fun, and I find that music has a way of reaching me on an entirely different level than anything else. So, when you can get both, I love it.
Kneecap is set in the late 2010s in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh and Naoise Ó Cairealláin speak English, but have also learned to speak Irish from Naoise’s father, Arlo. He was part of the Irish Republic and faked his own death to avoid being arrested by the British. Now teenagers and still best friends, Liam is arrested at a wild party, and while sitting at the police station, he refuses to speak English, claiming he can only speak Irish. The police ask JJ Ó Dochartaigh, a music teacher at an Irish school, to come to the station to translate. There, JJ discovers both drugs and lyrics in Liam’s notebook, covers for him, and JJ and the best friends begin to make hip-hop music together.
This is a rowdy, high-energy movie that is darkly funny, with a layered dose of Irish politics. Taking place in Northern Ireland, the Irish language was looked down on, and, over its history, fully banned and then allowed back cyclically. So between Liam’s father teaching the kids Irish on the down-low (which speaks of rebellion and instills an inherent lack of trust for authority in the boys) and JJ teaching at an Irish school (a proper way to learn the language, but still a balking of current norms), this is one large piece of, “We claim ourselves and you can kick rocks.”
Visually, Kneecap is an original. Between the hurried camera movements, the bright colors, and the graphic-novel-like imagery, there are also some fantastic additions. Claymation is used in one sequence, and drawings appear on the film frames, like splashes of water or dust puffing out. It’s this playful, out-of-the-box, “we can do what we want” visual attitude that keeps it fresh and hugely engaging.
One of the best parts of this film is knowing that these three men, who star here with their own given names, are an actual Irish hip-hop trio. They tour under their stage names Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap, and DJ Próvaí, and the film ends with fantastic footage of some of their concerts.
An audacious film full of sex, drugs, and rap, with electrifying music, and a bittersweet message about family and history, Kneecap is a hugely creative film that stands on its own. It’s a great ride, and you’re going to love it, but turn on those subtitles because these guys talk fast!
Runtime: 104 minutes
Motion Picture Rating: R
Languages Spoken In The Film: English and Irish with English subtitles
Should You Watch It? Yes
Did I Cry? Nope
My Rating: 4/5 Stars
Available: Free on Netflix, to rent on Prime Video, or may be available for free on other streaming platforms
