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Knuckle
Knuckle
Release Date
05 Aug 2011
05 Jan 2012
- User rating
-
Currently
3/5 Stars.
- Critic rating
- Currently 4/5 Stars.
62% of raters want to see this movie
Certificate:
15A
Genre:
Documentary
|
Drama
James Quinn McDonagh and Paddy "The Lurcher" Joyce. Names that demand attention. Men related by blood but separated by a feud that dates back generations. As the heads of rival families, they train to represent their feuding Irish travelling clans, in their long-standing history of violent bare-knuckle boxing.With KNUCKLE, filmmaker Ian Palmer presents a hard-edged portrait of Irish Traveller male culture and explores the bond of loyalty, the need for revenge, and the pressures to fight for the honor of your family name.Irish Travellers are normally silent about certain parts of their lifestyle and this is a rare chance to step inside one of the world's most vibrant and elusive communities. Never before has such a portrayal of their fighting traditions been committed to film as Palmer spent years around the clans before they agreed to shoot their secretive world and their way of settling scores: no gloves, no padding, just KNUCKLE.
Cast:
Ian Palmer
Writers:
Ian Palmer
Producers:
Directors:
Ian Palmer
- Critic rating
-
Currently
4/5 Stars.
Movies.ie Critic Review
Against the backdrop of a feud between three traveller families (the Quinn-McDonaghs, the Joyces and the Nevins), over twelve years, Irish filmmaker Ian Palmer explores the underground tradition of bare-knuckle boxing as each family challenges the other to yet another bout. With prize money running as high as £120,000, it’s more than family pride that’s at stake, but there’s clearly tragedy and regret just below the surface of all this macho posturing…
THE VERDICT: Like Fight Club with lots of sunburn and bad tattoos, Ian Palmer’s hard-hitting documentary proves that hatred itself can become a tradition. Especially when it comes to the Irish. Any potential comedy soon gives way to tragedy here, underpinning the simple ugly truth of one former friend beating another former friend into submission. Or unconsciousness. It’s a rocky road to self-respect, and the fact that our main protagonist, the undefeated James Quinn McDonagh, would, in his own words, rather be at home with a Jaffa speaks volumes about the stupidity and futility of it all.
Review by Paul Byrne
- Avg User rating
-
Currently
3/5 Stars.
User Reviews