Trainspotting 2

Trainspotting 2 (or T2: Trainspotting) is a surprising anomaly. No one really demanded it but here it is. The 1996 original film broke new ground in its stylistic aesthetics and characters, which both revelled in the highest highs and lowest lows of drugs. Some say the film glamourised drugs, I say you need to show the attraction in the first place in order to fully engage with the terrible after-effects. It was released in a different time for British cinema and politics, at the height of Cool Britannia, a year before a youthful new Prime Minster made the country feel young again. But Oasis are now gone. New Labour and Tony Blair are a distant memory, leaving behind a bitter aftertaste and a costly, bloody war. The British film industry is no longer interested in producing original material en mass anymore. In recent history, Scotland unsuccessfully lobbied for independence (though a second referendum probably isn't too far off) only to have the U.K. announce plans to leave the EU following the divisive Brexit referendum. This leaves Scotland in a state of purgatory. The country remains part of the U.K. but the vast majority voted to remain in the EU and the SNP, the majority party in Scotland that swept away Labour’s long-held grip on the country, continues to fight for the country’s independence in the form of arguing for a second referendum (and to remain part of the EU). This is a time of upheaval, change and questioning of national identity. 

So while it might seem odd to return 20 plus years later, the return of Renton (Ewan McGregor) Spud, (Ewen Bremner) Begbie (Robert Carlyle) and Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller) is actually fairly timely. Whilst Trainspotting revealed the reality of the underbelly to Cool Britannia, by contrasting culturally rich Edinburgh against seemingly wide spread urban poverty and drug abuse, Trainspotting 2 returns to the same characters, just stuck in a state of purgatory, with the modern world serving as a distant, unattainable backdrop. The film is loosely based on Irvine Walsh's sequel novel, Porno - how much is retained, I can't say, having not read the book. Sick Boy runs his aunt’s graveyard-like pub, whilst pulling scams on the side with his girlfriend Veronika (Anjela Nedyalkova). Spud is holed up in a council estate tower, still addicted to heroin. Begbie is in prison but soon hatches a plan to escape. And Renton, having stolen £16,000 from his three friends in the last film, returns to his home city after learning of his mother’s death. As Renton begins to navigate his old stomping grounds again, old friendships are rekindled but some wounds run too deep and sparks soon fly..  

Danny Boyle returns to direct and his gift for kinetic story-telling and editing has clearly matured since his earlier years. His gift for visual storytelling is unrivalled, with maybe the exception being fellow Brit Edgar Wright. He is unafraid to let non-diegetic visuals and graphics tell the story. A basic scene in which Renton enters a lift cuts a wide shot of the apartment block with the number of the floors illustrated and highlighted on the side of the building as the lift moves up. Renton’s shadow cast over his now departed mother’s seat at the family home. Or a scene in which Renton and Sick Boy share in their passion for football, sliding across a pitch drenched in rain in the middle of their apartment. Or a chilling scene in which Spud is trying to kick his addiction, with a shadowy figure illuminating the wall, recalling Nosferatu the vampire. Boyle’s films are filled with wonderful visual punctuation marks such as these scenes and highlight what a master of the form he is. The fantasy sequences of the original served to highlight the highs and deepest lows of taking drugs and here it is more to illustrate the character’s emotions.  And while Trainspotting 2's visual style is more sedate than the original,  with more of an emphasis on the character drama, it is still filled with kinetic and exciting scenes, backed by an excellent soundtrack.

Edinburgh is also shown off a lot more in this film than in the last one (having filmed most of the original in Glasgow for cheapness’ sake). As a city I have visited increasingly in the past couple of years, it was great seeing it on the big screen (and in highlighting areas I was unaware of). Plus it works within the realm of the story. Sick Boy states at one point “the world changes, even if we don’t”. The gentrification of Edinburgh has forced the hanger ons to the fringes of the city, who try to scrape a living together. The fact that they remain trapped in purgatory is something they largely blame on Renton but greater economic, social and political factors have forced these deeply flawed and destructive characters into the fringes of society. Is it any wonder that Renton ironically reprises his “Choose life” speech in the middle of Harvey Nichols in the heart of the city? The updated speech now covers damning indictments of social media and zero-hour contracts. The gang can never integrate with society at large. 

While I don't think it matches the original, Trainspotting 2 more serves as an epilogue to the characters and story. It only really works if you have any knowledge of the original but it serves as a fitting conclusion to the story. While the ambiguity of the original ending is great of course, there is this lingering curiosity of what happens next. Clips and scenes are cleverly intercut from the original into this film – for example, the closing shot of the original becomes part of this film’s opening montage, only now Renton is coming back into focus. While the film is a bit light on plot, it is effective at giving each character a clear arc on where they are and establishing their motives. Renton is fleeing a failed marriage and finds himself directionless. Sick Boy wants to open a bordello. Spud wants to kick smack for good and begin to write the chronicles of his life down. Begbie falls back into a life of crime after he fails to connect with this family but seeks vengeance when he hears that Renton is back in town. This film gives equal amount of screen-time to all four characters with the shift moving away from Renton as the main focus (though his actions are at the centre of the proceedings). The most effective is probably Spud’s, as he desperately tries to escape his addiction with a triumphant moment for him being able to run to the top of Arthur’s Seat. This is all undercut by the original’s dark sense of humour, which is still present here.  

Based on the strength of the acting, the script and the excellent direction, this is more than enough to hold the film up, even if it does lack the original’s breakneck pace (almost like a man laying down train tracks with the train baring behind him). Some plot point don't exactly pay off but the emotions are pitched perfectly. A great scene sees Renton, Sick Boy and Spud returning to the Highlands to pay respect to the departed Tommy, a friend who turned to heroin and eventually caught HIV in the original, his spirit literally haunting the mountainside with a tasteful insert from the original film. Sick Boy reminds Renton that Tommy’s death is essentially his fault. Renton quickly retorts that if Sick Boy wasn't so busy taking drugs, he might have been able to properly look after his infant daughter and prevent her pre-mature death. There is this pressure cooker element to the film that works really well and that the actors work hard to sell. The returning cast easily fit back into their old roles, whilst giving them new layers. Carlyle's Begbie is more terrifying than ever but the character is revealed to have a more tragic backstory. Character moments like this make the film worth seeing. 

Trainspotting 2 really didn't need to exist but Boyle and the cast work hard to make this return worth seeing. It works beyond the nostalgia of the original film, in that the events of the original are echoes of the past that haunt the streets they walk and live in. Clips from the original are intercut with home movie-like footage of the characters as children to add to this sense that society at large has moved on and has left these characters behind. The emotions and acting are pitched perfectly, with the returning cast giving it their all. And as a technical showcase, the film is another bold statement for Boyle. The film is most successful serving as an epilogue to the original film, as it is a little light on plot. Retaining that dark sense of humour with strong character moments and excellent visuals, Trainspotting 2 is unmissable really.  

Rating: 8/10