"The Troubles meets 'Trainspotting'" in this "riotous Belfast-set comedy" about the rise of the real-life hip hop trio Kneecap, said Ed Power in The Daily Telegraph. The members of the Irish-language group – Naoise Ó Cairealláin, Liam Óg Ó Hannaidh and J.J. Ó Dochartaigh – have never acted before, but "they impress playing cartoonish versions of their real selves while poking fun at clichés about Northern Ireland and its history of conflict".
In this telling, Liam and Naoise swerve from drug-dealing to music after meeting the budding producer J.J., who encourages them to channel their passion for the Irish language into hip hop. "There's lots of music in 'Kneecap', and the Public Enemy-style raps are explosive", but director Rich Peppiatt "never forgets he's making a movie rather than an extended music video". Hard-punching and hilarious, "the film directs a well-placed kick at the nether regions to anyone who insists music, politics and cinema cannot mix".
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