Bold, crazy and wild

Rating: Null/10 (11 December 2009)

A wild, freeform, Rabelaisian trip through the darkest recesses of Edinburgh low-life, focusing on Mark Renton and his attempt to give up his heroin habit, and how the latter affects his relationship with family and friends: Sean Connery wannabe Sick Boy, dimbulb Spud, psycho Begbie, 14-year-old girlfriend Diane, and clean-cut athlete Tommy, who's never touched drugs but can't help being curious about them...I was pleasantly surprised by this film. It is a shocking look at the effects drugs can have on people and the same time it poses some interesting questions about the world we live in and the youth. It has a very original screenplay and one of the most stylish directions I have ever seen. It is a energetic, imaginative, and vibrant film and at the time it came out, it must have felt very unique. I really enjoyed it but had I seen this film in 1996 ( I was too young but I'm talking hypothetically ) this film would have made a much bigger impact in me (specially the visual aspect of it) and the reason why is because the director Danny Boyle, uses certain filming techniques, and certain effects that are truly mind-blowing and make for great scenes but, as of 2009, this techniques are now fairly common and have been used by several directors. And again, I think Trainspotting is great but had I not seen such films as Requiem For A Dream(2000) and Garden State(2004) just to name a few, I would definitely think more of this one. Anyway, the film balances extremely well, humorous moments with the more disturbing scenes, and always staying truth to itself. At times, the narrative isn't as focused as it should be but this is a minor flaw. Of all the actors two deserve being mentioned, first, Robert Carlyle who plays Begbie, one of the so called mates of Mark Renton, a very unlikable character but extremely well played by the actor, and second, Ewan Mcgregor who's terrific as the lead character, Renton, and delivers probably, the best performance of his career so far. The soundtrack is great as well and fits perfectly with the crazy and chaotic scenes of the film. Trainspotting is definitely a must-see for any movie-lover.
8/10