Trainspotting follows Mark Renton (whom narrates the story, but is also desperate to try to get out of the drug scene). The film loosely follows Mark's friends and their respective story arcs which all converge to eventually tell the full story...
I think I got this wrong the first time that I watched it; I thought it was passable on the first viewing, but nothing more than that, but now that I've seen it again I have been able to see the bigger picture and have taken much more away from the film on a second viewing...
To begin with, the group of friends are all very different with very different goals/aims in life. Whilst this is important in establishing character arcs, this is totally destroyed by the death of a child (something that happens when they are all off their heads on drugs). This is a heart-breaking scene within the film and it's hard to not be moved by this scene unless you have a heart of stone.
Another strong scene within the film is when Mark starts tripping in his bedroom and we see the walls and the room expanding; I'll hold my hands up and admit I've never taken drugs, but I could fully imagine that this is how those who were under the influence may be afflicted; everyone feels miles away and a shout becomes a whisper I get that; this was a wonderfully directed scene by Boyle and a superbly acted sequence by McGregor.
Perhaps what finally needs to be acknowledged is Robert Carlyle's performances as Begbie; many may claim that McGregor is the best thing about this film, but I disagree I thought Carlyle was the standout performer in this film.
Truth be told, I watched this film in preparation for the sequel (as it had been so long since I saw the original). Whilst this original film has some flaws, it is certainly better than my initial impression of it and is very much worth seeing.
I think I got this wrong the first time that I watched it; I thought it was passable on the first viewing, but nothing more than that, but now that I've seen it again I have been able to see the bigger picture and have taken much more away from the film on a second viewing...
To begin with, the group of friends are all very different with very different goals/aims in life. Whilst this is important in establishing character arcs, this is totally destroyed by the death of a child (something that happens when they are all off their heads on drugs). This is a heart-breaking scene within the film and it's hard to not be moved by this scene unless you have a heart of stone.
Another strong scene within the film is when Mark starts tripping in his bedroom and we see the walls and the room expanding; I'll hold my hands up and admit I've never taken drugs, but I could fully imagine that this is how those who were under the influence may be afflicted; everyone feels miles away and a shout becomes a whisper I get that; this was a wonderfully directed scene by Boyle and a superbly acted sequence by McGregor.
Perhaps what finally needs to be acknowledged is Robert Carlyle's performances as Begbie; many may claim that McGregor is the best thing about this film, but I disagree I thought Carlyle was the standout performer in this film.
Truth be told, I watched this film in preparation for the sequel (as it had been so long since I saw the original). Whilst this original film has some flaws, it is certainly better than my initial impression of it and is very much worth seeing.