“Living like this is a full-time business.”

Choose Life. Choose a job. Choose Trainspotting.
Danny Boyle had directed before making Trainspotting, but it’s this film that really seemed to stamp him as a director to notice. This film follows a rowdy group of twenty-somethings, several of whom are heroin addicts. It not only pushed Boyle into the conversation, but Ewan McGregor as well, who stands out as the protagonist of our film. His journey as an addict who works to break free from the life only to (possibly) settle in a ‘normal’ life is the story, but it’s the comedy and energy through the film that makes it work so well. Join us – Pete Wright and Andy Nelson – as we kick off our Trainspotting series with Boyle’s 1996 film Trainspotting.

What is it about Boyle’s filmmaking style that captures our attention? What do we think of the key performers in this film – Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Robert Carlyle, Kevin McKidd and Kelly McDonald? The soundtrack is fantastic. How much does that infuse Boyle’s style? Or is it his style infusing his music selection? And editing? Or it it all just part of the way he sees his films? The comedy seems to capture the essence of the the lives of this group of twenty-somethings. It also allows the darker moments to hit that much harder.

All in all, this film’s a great ride and gut punch at the same time. Plus, it makes us never want to do heroin! We have a great time talking about it, so check it out then tune in. The Next Reel – when the movie ends, our conversation begins!

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