The new Oasis Knebworth 1996 film has broken the UK box office record for highest-grossing documentary of 2021.
Released in cinemas last week, the doc tells the story of the band’s legendary shows through the eyes of the band and the fans in attendance.
Made by Grammy Award-winning director Jake Scott, the film also includes never before seen archive concert footage.
Oasis Knebworth 1996 has now been confirmed as Britain’s highest-grossing documentary of the year so far.
“We are thrilled to see that fans around the world have enjoyed the incredible cinematic experience of Oasis Knebworth 1996 and we look forward to providing audiences with even more opportunities to relive the energy and excitement around these iconic concerts soon,” said Tom Mackay, president, premium content, Sony Music Entertainment.
Oasis Knebworth 1996 includes narration from Noel Gallagher and Bonehead, though Liam is less involved – Scott recently opening up to NME about why.
“Honestly, I think it was just Liam’s personal preference,” he explained. “As I understood it, he felt the film spoke for itself. Noel and Bonehead offered a lot, Liam wasn’t gonna offer much more. He’s a different person to Noel.”
“He’s a performer and you find this with a lot of actors, they don’t want the distraction of anything else. They want to be in the present moment. And I wonder if it’s a bit of that really, a bit of artistic integrity. ‘I don’t want to remember and go back. I’m doing my tour right now and I wanna focus on that.’”
In NME‘s five-star review of the film, we wrote:
“Family arguments aside, there’s little else to fault Oasis Knebworth 1996. For those who were there, the film provides a portal back to a golden age.”
“For everyone else, it’s a reminder of those special teen years – when a plastic cup filled with warm lager and a sunny afternoon in a park makes for the biggest adventure of your life. And yes, Noel, there were no mobile phones.”
Source: NME
Photo: Jill Furmanovsky