Wednesday, April 5, 2017

In 1996 brought a cult film leaving everyone breathless with a film as a reflection of Edinburgh young society, but also the reflection of how society use to see the world. A movie hard to make it better, the idea of making a sequel is probably scary, because it can ruin the original. Hollywood trend of rehashing or repurposing stories trying to make movies to cash it, end up destroying masterpieces for the sake of money.

It’s been 20 years for all the characters, the director (Danny Boyle) and the actors:Ewan McGregor Johnny Lee Miller, Robert Carlyle and Ewen Bremner. Trainspotting 2

The idea of choose life still there, but now is about an opportunity then a betrayal. Renton lives in Amsterdam married with family, happy, fulfill, Spud continues struggling with his addiction, taking a large toll, his job, longtime partner and son Fergus. Simon “Sick Boy” Williamson, a cocaine addict runs a pub with side job of blackmailing people with his Bulgarian girlfriend Veronika (Anjela Nedyalkova) Francis “Franco” Begbie is serving 25 years in prison for probably the events at the end of the first film Trainspotting.

With this setting Danny Boyle discover a near perfect sequel with the perfect ingredients, comedy, action, drama, but mostly nostalgia. With a story revisiting all 4 characters seems that things haven’t change a lot, the nuances, in places and sounds is there, if you pay close attention, you can hear Underworld’s Born Slippy, Lou Reed’s Perfect Day. To me is like visiting a place you lived and some things have evolve, but not change. Danny Boyle take the risk of bringing footage from the original film to help the story, and even bringing back Diane and Mikey for a brief scene. This decisions pays off.

Some things to change, others don’t. Renton is the perfect example of the promise to change things, he seems to be cure of this crazy life from the Renton from 1996. Choices are not longer an idea of a better life, family, health and even wealth. It’s all a lie, and illusion, is the syndrome of apparent success. He comes back to Edinburgh because he miss all this, but specially the thrill of a “Final Hit” The most powerful character is Spud, he wants to change but he can’t, because society push you too hard, is too strong. One of my favorite scene during Spud therapy, he tells the members that the main reason of his demise is “Daylight Savings”, that’s why he gets late to his job, then loosing it, then getting late to his unemployment appointment, becoming a whole series of unfortunate events. Simon and Renton miss each other, that’s what bring them together and Begbie is just Begbie a caricature of a person too violent who cannot make things right.

Trainspotting 2 is a great sequel and excellent continuation of the events of the original film back in 1996.


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