At this moment, somewhere on planet Earth, a radio is thumping with the unmistakable opening of Chumbawamba’s utterly absurd 1997 smash, “Tubthumping.” Love it or hate it, that opening segue from “We’ll be singing / While we’re winning” to “I GET KNOCKED DOWN / BUT I GET UP AGAIN / YOU ARE NEVER GONNA KEEP ME DOWN” is an undeniably stirring bit of adrenaline. The voice shouting “I GET KNOCKED DOWN” belongs to Dunstan Bruce, lead and co-director of the documentary appropriately titled I Get Knocked Down, an endearing, intelligent exploration of the perils of fleeting fame.
Co-directed by BAFTA and Emmy winner Sophie Robinson, I Get Knocked Down takes a novel approach to its topic. Older viewers (like yours truly) may recall the cover “star” of Chumbawamba’s 1997 album Tubthumper: a baby with a grotesquely large mouth. (Think that face from David Lynch’s INLAND EMPIRE but plastered onto a baby’s head.) In I Get Knocked Down Bruce is stalked, harassed, and repeatedly put down by the (seemingly) adult version of the baby. It’s a fine fit for a documentary centered on the former frontman of a band whose long career was centered on anarchist beliefs.
The format is a deft mix of brief fantasy sequences and the reality of Bruce’s current life. “My name is Dunstan Bruce,” he announced in voice over as the film begins. “I’m a 59-year-old man and I’m struggling.” Bruce is a compelling protagonist—lanky, well-dressed, good-natured but still an anarcho-punk at heart. He is also an individual mainly known for one song. “Because we didn’t set out to write a hit single,” Bruce explains, “I always regarded it as a happy accident.”
A mainstream pop hit was certainly never part of the plan for Chambawamba. During the film’s course he visits his old bandmates (the group disbanded in 2012), sorting through their shared history while also attempting to wrap his head around an extraordinarily strange career. “Once upon a time I really thought I could change every world,” Bruce says, sadly. “But that was way back when I was someone.”
I Get Knocked Down is often rather maudlin, and the demented ghost of Chambawambas past does not help matters; a little of Bruce’s large-headed antagonist goes a long way. Yet the questions the figure asks Bruce are not without merit, nor are the accusations. What does it mean for an anarcho-punk group to achieve worldwide stardom? Does success inherently mean selling out? And is it a bad thing to be remembered for just one song? Most viewers will argue it is not; Bruce isn’t so sure.
The last 30 minutes or so are centered on Bruce’s attempt at a second act. He has a new band, Interrobang, and we watch as he heads out on tour. It is fascinating to watch Bruce and his bandmate set up their gear and merch table, then sing to crowds that are often small. All the while Bruce’s buddy whispers into his ear: “Your dad would be so proud of you—shouting at some people in a half-empty room.” But Bruce’s new music and lyrics are compelling, as is his assertion that he is “trying to do things in a different way that’s more age appropriate.”
The film spends very little time discussing the creation and themes of “Tubthumping,” which is a mistake; who doesn’t want to delve a bit deeper into the birth of one of the strangest hits of the 90s? And even at 88 minutes it feels overlong, while also ending in an abrupt fashion that is far less clever than its makers believe it to be. Overall, though, I Get Knocked Down is both entertaining and insightful, and it is hard not to be moved by Bruce’s MO: “I don’t want to give up. I don’t want to just accept things as they are.” He may worry that he is a one-hit wonder. Still, a hit’s a hit, and getting up again more than 20 years later is admirable.
I Get Knocked Down screened at 2022 SXSW.