Choose...what?

Rating: 8/10 (18 March 2008)

Choose life. What does that exactly mean? Well, to me it means a lot of things but if you want to explore what "choose life" doesn't mean to some people, you should experience Danny Boyle's cult classic "Trainspotting". In a way, all these characters seem to have chosen a way of life, but apparently see it as something closer to death.
Not with those exact words Mark Renton (Ewan McGregor) explains the commitment of being an addict, but somehow he manages to expose his philosophy to the viewer while introducing us to his friends; some who support the philosophy, some who don't and some who don't even care. But I don't think that's "Trainspotting's" main point: showing how drugs can affect people.
For instance, there's one character, Begbie (Robert Carlyle), who doesn't consume at all but has (maybe) a bigger problem: an obsession with violence. He enjoys kicking people around and making them bleed. That's another point, another issue that affects Renton and the rest of his friends; the silly Spud (Ewen Bremmer), the unpredictable Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller) and the lost Tommy (Kevin McKidd).
The real star of the film is John Hodge's screenplay, based on Irvine Welsh's novel. It contains a heavy dose of character development that can be spotted clearly among the heroin injections and delusions of his creatures. It reminded me a lot of Terry Gilliam's "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" (with the exception of character development) because, like that film that also focused on drugs, "Trainspotting" has no defined plot line: it's like a roller-coaster ride that finishes and starts again without you being able to get off your seat. There are two times where you clearly sense the movie's coming to an end, but suddenly Hodge and Boyle bring something new to the table.
Like in "Fear", "Trainspotting" has a heavy load of narration (by Renton) that helps and confuses the viewer at the same time. It helps to understand the inner feelings of someone so consumed by an addiction like Renton. There are two beautiful scenes that leave no doubt of Boyle's inventive visual style: one follows Renton to a hospital after hi faints with a dose of heroin, another shows him in his own room recovering from his problem (this meaning not having a 'hit'-an injection-for weeks). Both scenes are visually stunning in a way that I would like to detail but don't want you to miss; so I'll just say they almost border surrealism.
Some time before these scenes, something occurs that provokes a major change in the film. At that point, if you have gotten used to the fact that the plot is not defined and lies beyond confusion (Renton's narration is confusing because it has some contradictions and sometimes doesn't let the viewer to think by itself), you might appreciate the final moments of the movie, like when Renton goes to London and Boyle creates a ten-second take of the city's most iconic places and it looks like a tourism commercial that doesn't fit with the tone the movie is employing at the timeBut it works; because it's funny and original.
Unlike Ewan McGregor's performance, for example. His Renton is the kind of role that gets a Scottish actor out of Scotland and catapults him to Hollywood. It involves being 'too Scottish', fairly good-looking and very charismatic. I'm not saying it's a bad performance, I'm just saying it's not difficult to achieve, and it helped McGregor's career greatly.
The rest of the guys basically have to do the same, which is something I adore in a way. I adore how British writers/directors/actors or whatever deal with friendship. It's a more disinterested way; you feel like no matter what happens, they'll always be there at the end of the day. It's just a true feeling, and I'm not telling you to expect it in this film, but if that were the case; it shouldn't matter whether you choose life or any other thing.