absolutely fantastic

Rating: 10/10 (23 April 2005)

This film is, to use that old cinematic cliché, a rollarcoaster. The film portrays the lives of a group of friends, most of whom are heroin addicts and the story of their seemingly relentless march towards simultaneous self destruction and discovery. Having lived in Scotland all my life the film does what few mainstream box-office smashes dare to, which is to give an accurate and truthful (if not slightly comical) portrayal of life for drug addicts and the lower classes in Scotland. This is made all the more poignant by the fact the story is set in Edinburgh, a city renound for its beauty and wealth, but which has a seedy underbelly of poverty, violence and drug abuse in the city's peripheral housing schemes (ignored by the wealthy inhabitants of the city centre). A strong plot excellent characters and a brilliant soundtrack all contribute to this masterpiece.