Dir. Rich Peppiatt
2023 | 105 mins | Ireland, UK
Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap, DJ Próvaí, Josie Walker, Simone Kirby, Michael Fassbender

An Irish rap group rails against British imperialism in Rich Peppiatt’s (One Rogue Reporter) riotous, unruly comic docudrama Kneecap. An exhilarating origin story for the real-life Belfast-based band of the title, combining fact and a liberal helping of fiction, it’s enthusiastically performed by the rappers themselves backed by Irish actors including Michael Fassbender, Josie Walker and Simone Kirby as they chronicle how fate brings the trio together and how they then go on to “change the sound of Irish music forever”..

West Belfast, 2019: After a meet-cute, two working-class drug dealers, Naoise Ó Cairealláin and Liam Óg Ó Hannaidh team up with schoolteacher JJ Ó Dochartaigh to form a hip-hop group. Rapping mainly in Irish Gaelic in line with their proud republican ethos, their verses combine lurid tales of sex and drugs with polemic and rebellion against authority, riling up Irish radio and unionist politicians alike. Following the group through drug binges (drawn in fantastical sequences recalling Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting), PSNI run-ins, cross-community mud-slinging and anarchic sell-out gigs, Kneecap is a rags-to-riches tale that’s steeped in local lore and laughs drawn from the absurdity of history, while also highlighting the ongoing battle to save the Irish language.

Showing times

• Fri 30 Aug: 1pm + 8pm
• Sat 31 Aug: 3pm  [CAPTIONED] + 8pm
• Mon 02 Sep: 2pm + 8pm
• Tue 03 Sep: 2pm + 5.30pm
• Wed 04 Sep: 2pm* + 8.15pm
• Thu 05 Sep: 2pm + 8pm

*Relaxed Screening

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∆ BBFC Rating Details:

Rated 18 – drug misuse, very strong language

*Subject to a £1.50 ticketing system charge. We don’t charge this to make a profit. Find out more >>