KNEECAP’S feature film is coming to Prime Video this November.
The movie, which opened in cinemas in August, had the biggest weekend opening for any homegrown film at the Irish box office since 2022′s Oscar-nominated The Banshees of Inisherin.
Directed by Rich Peppiatt and co-written with the group’s Móglaí Bap, Mo Chara, and DJ Próvai the film has already picked up awards at the Sundance Film Festival in the United States and the Galway Film Fleadh.
Peppiatt’s debut feature tells a heightened tale of Kneecap’s origin story. Set in post-troubles Belfast, childhood best friends Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh and Naoise Ó Cairealláin live debaucherously, selling drugs and partying to pass the time, but when they inadvertently cross paths with high school teacher JJ Ó Dochartaigh, things begin down a path none of them saw coming.
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At the same time, a civil rights movement, led by JJ’s partner, is fighting for the right to have the Irish language instated as an official language of Northern Ireland.
With this political backdrop, JJ sees an opportunity to use music to further the cause. Following in the footsteps of Naoise’s father (Michael Fassbinder), an IRA stalwart who instilled in them the power of language and culture, the three of them form Kneecap, a politically charged, anti-establishment rap trio who rap in Irish and embody the spirit of defiance.
“The best of films parachute you into a time and place uniquely of their own,” says Peppiatt.
“Mean Streets. Fargo. Trainspotting. West Belfast, 2019, was one of those places.
“The film-maker inside me knew there was a special meeting of time and place and people occurring.
“Forget headlines and political wrangling, there was a story to be told that could resonate far beyond West Belfast, the city as a whole or indeed this island. And I knew I had to make that film.”
The picture is also set to represent Ireland in the Oscars International Feature Film category, with Variety predicting the film as a contender for the Oscar nomination.
In its ‘predicted nominees’ section, it has suggested that Kneecap is ranked fifth in the ‘best international feature’ category behind Emilia Perez, I’m Still Here, The Seed of the Sacred Fig and The Girl with the Needle.
The shortlist for the International Feature Film Oscar will be announced on December 17 and the final five nominees will be announced on January 17 2025.