Trainspotting (1996)

Director:

Danny Boyle

Writers:

Irvine Welsh (novel)
John Hodge (screenplay)

Release Date:

19 July 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a starter home. Choose dental insurance, leisure wear and matching luggage. Choose your future. But why would anyone want to do a thing like that?

Plot:

Renton, deeply immersed in the Edinburgh drug scene, tries to clean up and get out, despite the allure of the drugs and influence of friends.

Plot Keywords:

Drugs | Heroin | One Word Title | Cold Turkey | Filthy Toilet

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 18 wins & 13 nominations

Cast

Ewan McGregor	...	Renton
Ewen Bremner	...	Spud
Jonny Lee Miller	...	Sick Boy
Kevin McKidd	...	Tommy
Robert Carlyle	...	Begbie
Kelly Macdonald	...	Diane
Peter Mullan	...	Swanney
James Cosmo	...	Mr. Renton
Eileen Nicholas	...	Mrs. Renton
Susan Vidler	...	Allison
Pauline Lynch	...	Lizzy
Shirley Henderson	...	Gail
Stuart McQuarrie	...	Gavin / US Tourist
Irvine Welsh	...	Mikey Forrester
Dale Winton	...	Game Show Host

Also Known As:

На игле (Russia) [ru]
Ferrovipathes (Canada: French title) [fr]
La vida en el abismo (Mexico) [es]
Sin límites (Mexico) (video box title) [es]
Trainspotting (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Trainspotting (Czech Republic) [cs]
Trainspotting (Italy) [it]
Trainspotting (Denmark) [da]
Trainspotting (France) [fr]
Trainspotting (Slovakia) [sk]
Trainspotting (Spain) [es]
Trainspotting (Portugal) [pt]
Trainspotting (Slovenia) [sl]
Trainspotting (Poland) [pl]
Trainspotting (Japan: English title) [en]
Trainspotting - Neue Helden (Germany) [de]
Trainspotting - Sem Limites (Brazil) [pt]

MPAA:

Rated R for graphic heroin use and resulting depravity, strong language, sex, nudity and some violence.

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Argentina:18 | Iceland:16 | USA:TV-MA (cable rating) | Australia:R | Brazil:18 | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A (DVD rating) | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | France:-16 | Germany:16 (bw) | Hong Kong:III | Ireland:18 | Israel:18 | Italy:VM14 | Japan:R | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/18 | Singapore:R(A) | South Africa:18 | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Calton Road, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

Company:

Channel Four Films

Trivia:

Irvine Welsh had been approached by film-makers before about adapting "Trainspotting" for the screen but had resisted their offers. He was won over by Andrew Macdonald and John Hodge's enthusiasm for the project but only on the condition that they didn't adopt a Ken Loach semi-documentary approach to the material.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Mark leaves the money for Spud, it is in the middle of the locker and parallel to the locker walls, but when Spud retrieves it the money is crooked and off-center.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Mark "Rent-boy" Renton: [narrating] Choose Life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family. Choose a fucking big television, choose washing machines, cars, compact disc players and electrical tin openers. Choose good health, low cholesterol, and dental insurance. Choose fixed interest mortgage repayments. Choose a starter home. Choose your friends. Choose leisurewear and matching luggage. Choose a three-piece suit on hire purchase in a range of fucking fabrics. Choose DIY and wondering who the fuck you are on Sunday morning. Choose sitting on that couch watching mind-numbing, spirit-crushing game shows, stuffing fucking junk food into your mouth. Choose rotting away at the end of it all, pissing your last in a miserable home, nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish, fucked up brats you spawned to replace yourselves. Choose your future. Choose life... But why would I want to do a thing like that? I chose not to choose life. I chose somethin' else. And the reasons? There are no reasons. Who needs reasons when you've got heroin?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Dil Dosti Etc (2007)

Soundtrack:

Statuesque

One of the best films ever - a lot of people missed the point

It's ironic that I'm saying "many people missed the point" because I did, too. My original review on IMDb gave the film a negative rating. I deleted it months ago because I have since purchased the Director's Cut on DVD and fallen in love with it.

The movie is energetic, imaginative and unique. It's taken from Irvine Welsh's novel, which I now really want to read. It's about a group of heroin addicts (led by Ewan McGregor's Renton) in Scotland who can't seem to live past their addiction...everything centers around drugs.

"Trainspotting" was condemned for promoting drug use, but I agree with fellow reviewer Bob the Moo who claims this was a misinterpretation on the media's behalf - yeah, it may show drugs as being "funny" at times (like Renton's wacky hallucination) but it certainly doesn't glamorize them. Some of the sequences are sickeningly realistic and depressing - like the scene with the baby. That's tragic stuff, and totally unexpected. It's also effective because by that point in the film we care about the characters enough for it to affect us on an emotional level.

The movie was really popular in the UK but never got much acclaim overseas. Americans in general will always be less liberal and be quicker to damn films for their messages. "Taxi Driver" was hailed by Europeans in '76...can't really say the same for US critics - it was a huge split in opinion at the time.

Ditto here. Most Americans didn't really "get it" and the only attention it received was the controversy surrounding the appearance of Mr. McGregor's genitalia. Oh, the humanity! If you haven't seen "Trainspotting" yet, I highly recommend it. Don't be turned off at first by its bleak humor and sick content - I won't lie, it IS a rough ride...but by the end, it's worth it.