Masterpiece Cinema - Trainspotting

Trainspotting

Starring Ewan McGregor, Johnny Lee Miller, Ewen Bremner, Robert Carlyle.

Written by John Hodge (based on the book by Irvine Welsh).

Directed by Danny Boyle.

Genre: Drama / Comedy

Released: 1996

Running time: 94 mins.

Rated: R (American rating for for graphic heroin use and resulting depravity, strong language, sex, nudity and some violence. Long list, isnt it?)

IMDb link: http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0117951/

Generally, in this column, I try to find movies that not too many people have heard of to talk about. A quick look at my list of previous articles reveals that Im not very often successful in this attempt. Sure, I discuss movies that either have a low profile or havent made much bank, but generally, theyre movies people have heard of. Theres a reason for this. More often than not, the movies people havent heard of suck at least, this is the case with whats available in most mainstream video stores.

A recent example of this would be my renting out of the film Spun. Spun is the feature film debut of Jonas Akerlund, a music video director whos worked with such acts as the Smashing Pumpkins and Madonna. Id been looking forward to seeing Spun for years, excited by the prospect of Ackerlunds distinctive visual style being applied to a feature. Combine that with the fact that Im a hopeless fan of the Smashing Pumpkins. Also, Pumpkins leadman Billy Corgan not only wrote the majority of music for Spun, but also has a cameo in it. Im well-and-truly sold. Too bad Spun sucked. I mean, yeah, it had its moments, and it was interesting to watch, but it just plain sucked.

I wont get into the problems that Spun has, other than to say this: Its fairly certain that it was trying to follow in the footsteps of Trainspottin. If thats the case, that's why it did so miserably.
[BB]
Youve seen Trainspotting, right? Youve at least heard of it, Im guessing. It perplexes me why I like this movie so much, and why I regard it with as much affection as I do. I mean, really, I probably shouldnt. Dont get me wrong; its a good movie, but its not an easy movie to watch. Its by no means a feel good film. It tells the ugly story of a bunch of ugly heroin junkies living in ugly Edinburgh. So why does it have such a hold over me? Why is it something I watch casually, as comfort viewing? I have no idea. It could just be that good writing is good writing, good acting is good acting, and a good film is a good film even if it involves a scene that takes place in the worst toilet in Scotland, even if it involves a family breakfast table getting sprayed with human excrement.

Could it be the movie's hipness that keeps me coming back to it? The use of music by Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, Leftfield and Elastica, amongst many others, insures its cool status, as does the slick direction by Danny Boyle (whose latest film, 28 Days Later has also been covered in this column). And hey, Ewan McGregor is about as cool as a white guy can get, theres no argument to that. Hes Obi-Wan Kenobi, for Gods sake!

Could it be how funny it is? Because it is funny, even if its a morbid, dark kind of funny in other words--my kind of funny.

Maybe its the ring of hope where the film ends; no matter how far you fall, no matter how terrible your life can get, theres always the possibility that youll be able to turn it all around.

Theres talk of a sequel to Trainspotting, based on Irvine Welshs follow-up to the original book. Its no surprise that the studio would want to do this. When it was released in 1996, Trainspotting was an instantaneous cult hit one of those rare films that are almost immediately absorbed into the pop culture lexicon. I guess people saw the same things in it that I do.

I couldve gotten a little more obscure with this column. I could have recommended Shallow Grave to you, the film that Danny Boyle and Ewan McGregor worked on together before this. I could have recommended Twin Town or The Acid House, both of which are Scottish films, one of which is based on an Irvine Welsh book, and both of which are so utterly bleak and disturbing that you cant bear to sit through them. I could have recommended Spun to youbut you know how I feel about that one.

No, I decided to recommend Trainspotting. Why? because it does what all those films do, and it does it all better. Though it may be the most well known out of those Scottish cult films and thus less likely to qualify for a write-up in Masterpiece Cinema, theres a reason its more well-known: Its because its a good movie--as simple as that.

Next week: Something animated. I promise.

Politics Factzone: The truth about Kim Jong Il Kim Jong Il, the leader of the free world, has decided to move on to more fertile grounds, leaving with us just the memories of 8-color rainbows, singing Korean women and couple of nuclear weapons. But who was this man whose next ambition would have been to get the next Nobel Peace prize? Here are just a few facts you should know about. more Top 5 Conspiracy Theories Related to John F. Kennedy's Assassination 26.Aug 2011 Since just after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, conspiracy theories abou...read ISRAEL KEEPING GHADDAFI AFLOAT 10.Mar 2011 ...read Glen Beck Is NOT the Anti-Christ! 10.Mar 2011 Hurtful and fiery rhetoric is now media’s default setting! This slippery and m...read Recipe for A REVOLUTION! (10 easy steps - try not to get burned!) 28.Feb 2011 Rebellion is cooking in the air. People are mad as hell, and not going to take...read THE ASSANGE CASE. CIA INTERFERED WITH SWEDISH LEGAL PROCESSES EXTREME RIGHT POLITICS A DANGER TO EUROPEAN UNITY THE AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY. OUT OF TOUCH, OUT OF FOCUS, OUT OF CREDIBILITY AND HOPEFULLY, OUT OF THE DOOR Opinion World governments charged with criminal negligence (in response to Megaupload case) EARTH (thecheers.org) - Federal authorities of the universe have charged the governments of all the countries in the world as well as the operators actually in power in these countries with operating a criminal enterprise, the Galaxy warriors announced Today. more The Great OSCARS 2011 – or so it would seem 5.Mar 2011 So, how exciting......a morning off, the Academy Awards. I wish I could say the...read Top 7 Expensive Bordellos. Prostitution: Shakedown, Tier Down, and Priced Out 31.Jan 2011 According to a report of the Washington DC-based US Department of State, The Ph...read The Great Secret and Reason for the JFK Assassination 11.Oct 2010 The great question is why the great secret? On June 4 1963, President Kennedy s...read Don't Do it! The 3 Worst Times to Get Tattoos 4.Oct 2010 As a general rule, tattoos gotten after 2 am are a bad idea. But in a bigger pi...read

Travel Travel Warning 13 September 2010 - DO NOT TRAVEL TO IRAN 13.Sep 2010 TRAVELWISE has been watching the situation in Iran for some months in relation ...read more TRAVELWISE TRAVEL ADVISORY 5th June 2010. DO NOT TRAVEL TO ISRAEL. 5.Jun 2010 Given the recent incident whereby the Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad, used...read TRAVELWISE. 16 APRIL 2010. EUROPEAN TRAVEL ALTERNATIVES 16.Apr 2010 Travelwise issues the following advice in relation to cancelled flights to, fro...read TRAVELWISE 6 APRIL 2010. AUSTRALIAN AIR TRAVEL. THE BEST WAYS TO TRAVEL BY AIR IN AUSTRALIA. 5.Apr 2010 Regular readers might have seen and read the various advisory and no-fly notice...read TRAVELWISE 2 APRIL 2010. QANTAS. 2.Apr 2010 Some concerns have been raised in relation to some of the maintenance practices...read Sport No Payoff From the Playoffs $16.50 will Get Anyone in the Hall Mr McGwire Stupid Athlete Tricks Technology Think Big! Think the World's Largest International Trade Show Top 9 cool laptop accessories for laptop geeks Twittering: I'm not that interesting Cheers Jesus' Answering Machine Brown Couch or twelve midgets in the town square How To Be Happy Drugged Out Saturday Nights Muslim Decapitation: Bad, or Simply Misunderstood?