Kneecap
By Kit Macdonald
"We found our calling: givin' the middle finger to the Brits…"
This fictionalised, semi-autobiographical romp tells the story of Kneecap, a hip hop group formed in West Belfast's Gaeltacht Quarter in 2017 who are known for their politically charged lyrics and their embracing of the Irish language. The band's members, Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí, play themselves alongside a cast of professionals including Michael Fassbender, Josie Walker and Simone Kirby.
Kneecap is largely an Irish-language film - you'll need to understand Spanish subtitles to get the most out of this screening - with a lot of the English in it shouted by irate police officers trying to persuade the boys to speak "the Queen's English" during their brushes with the law. Fassbender, meanwhile, interestingly reprises his role as Bobby Sands in Steve McQueen’s 2008 film Hunger, in playing one of the boys' dads, an ex-IRA man who tells him that “every word of Irish spoken is a bullet for Irish freedom”.
Kneecap's best moments come during its musical interludes, with director Rich Peppiatt, who previously directed one of the band's music videos, capturing the trio's bad-boy charisma and rebellious punk spirit perfectly.