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Post by Dirty Epic on Feb 6, 2017 15:20:03 GMT
As I’m hoping to see this very soon thought it appropriate to give T2 a thread. Won’t bore everyone with a review/eulogy of the 1996 original as it’s romanticised surreal take on junkies in Edinburgh has been talked about to death over the last 2 decades. All I will say is I enjoy the original Trainspotting quite a lot and like Life on Mars its ambiguous time-frame does give it a out of time and timeless appeal. Just hope the original (like sequels can do) doesn’t mess this up and do get the feeling – like when the BBC remade Auf Pet, the time gap might be too large for this to work… however with the original cast and director Danny Boyle on board should be at the very least a half decent effort. Also a bit of location spotting Renton's London flat is on the Talgarth Road/North End Road in West Kensington near the Famous 3 Kings pub. Not a million miles from Sweeney-land too! Will post a review when I see this – hopefully next few days.
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Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on Feb 6, 2017 22:11:22 GMT
Nice one Dirty. I plan to see T2 soon so I watched Trainspotting for the first time in 20 years ! Where has the time gone ? It was good to get acquainted with the characters again. I could only really remember the well known scenes eg; hunting in a rotten bog for drugs and Billy shagging his bird whilst watching Scotland score in the world cup The characters breakdown is, Begbie's an absolute nutter, Renton likes the drugs but wants out, Spud's a naive follower of his peers and Billy paid the ultimate price for his drug use. It'll be interesting to see what this lots been up to
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Post by Sam Tyler on Feb 6, 2017 22:24:27 GMT
I've never seen the original so would have to catch up on that first. I'd be interested to read members' reviews of T2.
Sam.
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Post by Dirty Epic on Feb 15, 2017 17:55:43 GMT
Off to see this tonight so will report on it soon. Actually was knocking around Renton's London flat earlier today so good omen to see this tonight! Hope it's a good un.
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Post by Dirty Epic on Feb 21, 2017 20:55:25 GMT
About time I sorted a review for T2 Trainspotting. I’ve also tried to do this review without looking at other stuff on the web too. {Spoiler Alert - Click Here To Reveal} Generally it’s a good film but for me it doesn’t have enough to make it a excellent or like it’s predecessor an original very good film and it’s also lost some of the surreal touches it’s predecessor had too. We’re 21 years on from when Renton (Ewan McGregor) ripped off the boys in London. He’s moved to Amsterdam and is seemingly a successful family man. However a heart attack and a mid-life crisis brings him back to Edinburgh to visit his father – still played by the evergreen James Cosmo. While Renton’s been away things have changed both dereliction of his old Leith stomping grounds and proposed hope of regeneration are in the air and his former pals have also gone their separate ways too. Sick Boy (Johnny Lee Miller) is now known as Simon and unlike his heroin loveable rogue days he’s turned into a paranoid coke-head with a brothel on the side. He’s in co-hoots with his female business partner, Veronika (Anjela Nedyalkova). Spud (Ewen Bremner) is battled scarred by decades of heroin abuse and attempts suicide. Then there’s Begbie (Robert Carlyle). In jail since his London hotel rampage he escapes from jail and quickly looks at re-establishing his ‘hard man’ reputation with associates like Sick Boy and one time knockabout scallywag criminal Mikey Forrester (a bit part for writer Irvine Welsh) who is now the area’s major gangster. Renton quickly looks the old faces up initially finding resentment from both Spud whom he saves from suicide and Simon who still angry from being ripped off gives Renton a severe beating for showing up again. However the ties that bind soon put the three lads back as mates again albeit with a subplot that Simon has a plan to extract revenge against Renton. Begbie meanwhile learns from Simon that Renton’s been in Amsterdam all these years and quickly sows a seed of him going out there to extract revenge… murder? against him. In the meantime the fortysomething quickly discover their youth has faded, they’re wallowing in nostalgia and don’t know where they’re going… this for me is where the sequel starts to flat line a bit being overly-marred in the mid-life crisis scheme of things. In particular a George Best tribute scene doesn’t really work so much for me and a lot of the raw kinetic energy the original had is seemingly lost in T2. What makes the film pick up is when Simon and Renton start to re-bond again and together formulate a scheme to use Simon’s inherited pub ‘Port Sunshine’ a focal point of regeneration in Leith. The two chancers convince government partners to grant them funding for this regeneration. Veronika has other ideas and decides to con Simon and Renton out of the money… before eloping to Bulgaria – a similar double cross to what Renton did in the first film. Begbie meanwhile is on the lose and after trying and failing to get his son involved in his criminal activities eventually finds a form of compassion to be proud of his son wanting to do well, study at college and ‘be a better man than him’. After a chance meeting in a club with Simon Begbie is spotted by Renton who hides in the club toilets Begbie goes in the next cubicle and after trying unsuccessfully to take some Viagra and dropping it in Renton’s cubicle finds out his nemesis is right next to him. After a comical chase in a muti-story car park Begbie faces off with Renton however Renton escapes and makes it back with Spud and Simon to Port Sunshine. This set’s up a show down between Begbie and Renton, Spud and Simon… however no one really wins this showdown as Spud incapacitates Begbie and the lads dump him in Simon’s BMW and leave him in the boot out side Edinburgh Prison. Meanwhile they discover they’ve been double crossed by Veronika who has gone back to Bulgaria with their EU cash for Port Sunshine. However there’s a sting in the tail Veronika decides to let Spud’s ex-girlfriend and child have the cash. Renton goes back to his family home and properly makes up with his dad for all the issues/heartache he’s caused them. In his unchanged bedroom he plays Iggy Pop’s Lust for Life before the story ends… or begins? So there you have it with T2. As I say it’s not a bad film and as sequels go its actually quite good in fact it doesn’t do the original a disservice that I suppose a rushed sequel in 2000, 2005, 2010 could have done. But it doesn’t have the timeless and original qualities the original had, the surreal charms the original had seem to be replaced by the fear and loathing of mid-life crisis etc. and couldn’t really warm to the fortysomething versions of Renton and Simon either. Still Spud and most definitely/in particular Begbie were bang on point. In summary it has a feel of the much better made/scripted version of Auf Pet the version that the BBC made a few years back and like Auf Pet sometimes when there is too long a gap between the original and the sequel it should be left alone. Would I advise people on the forum to watch T2? Oh yes it’s a million times better than most of the British period crap and Hollywood CGI blockbusters on offer at the moment however it does have it’s flaws and overall I’d rate it say 7.5/10. Not a bad effort but could’ve been (maybe should have been) better. Watch the original before seeing T2 too.
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Post by Gene Hunt on Feb 21, 2017 21:30:17 GMT
Brilliant write up DE. Thanks for taking the trouble I'll have to give it a watching. Gene.
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Post by Sam Tyler on Feb 21, 2017 21:43:46 GMT
Thanks for the write-up DE. Although I'm lost on the characters it sounds like a worthy follow-up so looks like I'll need to pick up T1 and view that first. Sam.
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Post by Dirty Epic on Feb 21, 2017 21:51:28 GMT
T1 was on Film4 a few weeks back so if it's on again I'll give a heads up. Worth a butchers.
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Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on Feb 23, 2017 16:16:50 GMT
Great write up Dirty. I still intend to watch this film soon and your review makes me look forward to seeing it.
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Post by Batgirl on Mar 14, 2017 6:25:41 GMT
I saw Trainspotting 2 at the pictures on the weekend. It didn't disappoint at all as a sequel. Well made with good old locations and of course a class batch of actors who were committed to their roles.
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