Trainspotting 2- Review
A little late to the scene but finding time to go to the movies in between studies is a trying task. Anyway, today I saw a screening of Trainspotting 2 and while it may not live up to the first, it is still worthy of a watch. This movie features the talents of Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Millar and Robert Carlyle.
Without taking away from the film, this movie is a British black comedy drama. Just like the first, this second instalment brings back your favourite boys as they revisit events from twenty years earlier and adapt to the twenty years after. Drugs, sex and rock and roll (via vinyl) seems to be a lifestyle that never ages.
The performances: Ewan McGregor is back at it again as his infamous role of Renton, who this time has decided to go back to his past this time. I really can't see anyone else playing this role because I believe that Ewan is just so well suited, this role could have easily been made just for him. *Trivia: he uses the same 'Renton laugh.' I do also believe that there were some signs of improvisation but only if you study it long enough. This isn't a problem either, as it just adds to the comedy and further allows you to appreciate the capacity of talent Ewan has.
Ewen Bremner plays his role of Spud so well in both films mostly by his non-verbal acting abilities. Sure, he speaks and he speaks often but his wide eyes, gaping mouth and facial expressions literally do the job. At parts in this movie he had me giggling away with the wide eyes. His story appeared to be the most sad and while the movie is generally funny, you can't help but think back to Spud's story and pity him. Again, it's hard to think about anyone else playing Spud (especially in all of his Scottish glory).
Jonny Lee Millar always surprises me with his Scottish accent. The first movie I watched with him as a lead was Hackers (alongside his ex-wife Angelina Jolie) and he was able to put on an American accent for that role. So as soon as I hear a Scottish brogue, I pause and then laugh. You'll find that most of the drug use in this movie comes from Sick Boy. Always in large quantities and always regular. I think Jonny does a good job of playing Sick Boy, particularly when he's taking charge of others or stabbing people in the back. I just felt that there was a little less energy in his role and a few minor faults in characterisation.
Ain't nothing more terrifying than Robert Carlyle as Begbie. My first time watching the original Trainspotting made me want to pee a little watching Begbie. Quick on the anger, he was able to make me jump but never have I ever seen such an angry Scotsman. Not even when there's a drought of Irn Bru. I'm not sure whether I could see Robert playing a more serious role, especially not a serious (non-violent) Begbie so I feel like this role has his best interest at heart.
The cons: Obviously you knew that this wasn't going to be like the first movie. Sometimes you get the odd circumstance where the second movie is surprisingly better than the first but that wasn't so in this case. While there were a few comedic moments in this movie, I don't think there were enough and even then, it might seem irrelevant or inappropriate. Not too much to say on the cons other than a few miscommunications for characterisation and dialogue.
My favourite part of this movie is actually Renton's long rant to Veronika (Anjela Nedyalkova) about the meaning of "Choose life." Now if you want strong relevance to the world, look no further than this particular scene. Powerful and very thought provoking. This I thought, was pure brilliance on Ewan's part because it means a lot.
The good thing about this movie is that even if you haven't seen the original Trainspotting film in awhile, there are times in this film where it will revert back to scenes of the original. Most likely for the purpose of significance, memoir and even to help the audience along. Perhaps just like these characters, they had all disappeared for a good twenty years.
If you don't have the funds to watch this movie at the cinema, it wouldn't be too much of an issue if you waited for it to come out on Netflix, any other streaming sources or DVD. But I do love sitting in cinemas and I did enjoy this film so no complaints over here.
Score: 7/10
Rating: R18+ drug use and coarse language