Review of Trainspotting (1996) by Ayrton C — 01 Jan 2018

Anyone who's semi-well educated can explain the mentality of drug addiction. However, it takes the perspective and knowledge of a former addict to make an audience truly understand what addiction is all about.

Trainspotting is more than just another movie about drug addiction. It's more of a complete look into the lives and circumstances of a group of maladjusted Scottish drug addicts in the 1990s than it is purely about the drugs. From the second we meet Renton, Sick Boy, Spud, Swanney, and even the non-addicts of the film, the story becomes more about their own endeavors than it is a document purely of their addictions. We see the despair and hopelessness of the Thatcher era, the mass unemployment, the austerity, and the flaws of being a member of Generation X in a world where opportunities are growing thinner and an easy escape from the depression is readily available.

Nobody in Trainspotting is in a position to be empathized with, yet through the depth and originality of character translated over from the novel we grow to at least appreciate their eccentricities. There's the pessimist Renton who acts as our eyes and ears; the suave Sean Connery obsessed con artist Sick Boy; the naive Spud; the entertaining psychopath Begbie; and the (at first) clean athletic Tommy. Through these primary five, we are taken into a bleak, yet witty world where tomorrow is a foreign concept and the only two things that matter are the moment, and the Skag. They obsess over their next fix, relish in the serenity while on the skag, and try to wean themselves off occasionally to keep their habits under the self-imposed illusion of being under control.

Trainspotting is both an adventure and a case study of everything to avoid in life. It's a look into the worlds of drug-fuelled escapism, nihilism, and indifference, all while running the risk of contracting HIV through their unsafe consumption. It's a movie which is willing to terrify and shock you senseless. It's not a mere drug movie. It's a movie about choosing a downward spiral disguised as a life.