This generations Trainspotting, Kneecap is a movie that’s equal parts fun and a crucial eye-opening look into the loss of language.
Kneecap, the movie tracks the start of real-life Irish hip-hop band Kneecap.
When Belfast music teacher JJ Ó Dochartaigh is asked by the police to be an interpreter for Irish speaking Liam Óg Ó Hannaidh (Mo Chara), he had no idea what he was getting into.
Feeling a kinship with Liam, the teacher must make a split decision, help out the young man or side with the police. That one moment changes both their lives, along with Liam’s mate Naoise Ó Cairealláin (Moglai Bap).
The teacher sees his younger self in the young men and suggests the pair turn their notebook scribblings into rap, an act that sees him take on the alter-ego of DJ Próvai,
Rapping in their native Irish, the band starts out in the teachers garage. With the help of social media, they soon gain notoriety. What they probably hadn’t planned was where it would take them.
Rapping in their native Irish language, Kneecap fast become the unlikely figureheads of a Civil Rights movement to save their mother tongue.
As the audience laughed along I pondered:
- You can’t help feel the Trainspotting undertones;
- All three leads are fabulous. While Liam and Naoise are great at playing themselves, JJ Ó Dochartaigh gets an extra shoutout for his drug-induced rants;
- Michael Fassbender is excellent as the father in hiding;
- The movie is a fascinating insight into the politics of the times and more importantly educates us about how languages are disappearing at an alarming rate.
Luna Cinemas has an opening night on Thursday, 29 August from 6:15pm, featuring music by RTRFM’s KING KANG, $10 Guinness or Jameson’s Dry and cola available from the bar, chips in a cup on entry, complimentary Chupa Chups and projected wall images before the film starts at 7:00 p.m.
For more information go to Luna cinemas.
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