T2 Trainspotting (2017) Reviews

• A quite different vibe to part 1, and undeserved of the bad reviews

  mattjkav2017-06-09

  I was the key demographic for the first film when it was released. I somehow snuck into the theater a few years shy of being 18 (and legal) to see it, and it had the same effect on me that it did on so many. The slick production, now-iconic soundtrack, grimy aesthetic, grim humor - it hit me hard (pun intended). Of course at that age, as gen-x cynical and world-weary as I thought myself, I was naive. Drugs were still novel, I was yet to see how dark and sad an actual addiction would look like. On some unconscious level I felt like I would live forever. A misplaced sense of my own intrinsic genius would allow me to balance an appreciation of the seedier, self destructive elements of the world with the actuality of my own inevitable personal success. As such, I walked out of Trainspotting 1 with a spring in my step. It was fun, fast, clever and a quick and temporary tour through some really ugly things. It was 'cool'. Sequels to iconic movies are dangerous, and there are many that I've avoided simply due to the knowledge that I'd rather not sully a great film's memory by adding to it a mediocre sequel. T2 was the same - I'd toyed with seeing it in the theater, but when that never eventuated, I was fairly unfazed. Tonight, feeling a little sleepless and lonely in my single room apartment, I stumbled upon a copy and thought 'why not?'. I knew that the reviews has oscillated between 'quite bad' to 'surprisingly good' but in a fit of downbeat nostalgia, I thought it might fit the bill. And it did. It wont be remembered with the reverence of the first film. I don't believe that Boyle made it under that assumption. It contains some great sequences, some similar (if familiar) visual effects, and a heap of well-integrated allusions to the earlier film. It doesn't have anything with the cut-through of the baby scene, the toilet scene, the (original) 'choose life' monologue. It is a more subdued, 'adult' and downbeat film. So - if you are a teenager who has recently seen the first film and are chasing the gut-punch intensity by watching the sequel, I can almost guarantee you'll fell let down. Conversely, if you've aged with the film, I suspect you'll find a good degree of resonance with the film. The genius of the film is how it manages to be a deeper, more emotional, more (god forbid) 'mature' take on life. At nearly-forty you probably don't party like you did in your 20's. Drugs are out, or few and far between. Meeting nubile 20 year olds is also out, or if not, feels seedy. You no longer find revolutionary new music weekly. IN fact, half of the songs on radio just alienate you. Despite the mixed blessings of this unforeseen middle -aged-ness you've found yourself shouldering, you are still a little haunted by what was, and what could have been. The wonderful moments of being young, the mistakes, the missed opportunities, the near-misses, the opportunities and betrayal. They don't leave you. If you can appreciate any of what I just wrote, you may (like I do) find T2 to be a very close second to T1. It's a real downer, but in a bittersweet way. Check it out.

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• It's as if they never left

  gricey_sandgrounder2017-01-27

  Sequels long after its original is always risky business. Especially one that I did not think needed it. But director Danny Boyle is back with a follow-up to one of the most influential British films of all-time. I had only seen Trainspotting for the first time several years ago. I remember being quite impressed by it, despite me never going nuts for drug-related films. I was more interested by the style of film- making and well developed characters. It also contain one of the most distressing scenes I have seen in any film. 21 years later, and now we see where the lads are now. I saw the trailer to see if it's going to be worth it, and I was surprised how good it looked. Some of the dialogue I was hearing sounded like we were instantly back in this mad environment. With the trailer doing plenty to get me intrigued, I had pretty solid hopes for a worth sequel. Amazingly, I felt it managed to all come together. For something that I'm sure Boyle holds very dearly to his heart, you would expect him to never go near this work again. Especially when he has never done a sequel before. But we are now here, and I think everyone did a grand job. I did not get the sense that the makers made this for an easy box office return. I felt it was there to be an actual follow-up to the events from 1996, which is fantastic to see. The tone is definitely being aimed at the people who grew up with the original. With that in mind, it will be interesting to see how it works to the generation that are of the age the cast were in the original, and see if it can relate to a broad age range. The gang are back, and all four of them were great in their performances. Honestly, it was like they had never left. Ewan McGregor holds the film well as Renton, has many strong moments and you can tell he is enjoying getting back in the saddle. Roberty Carlyle continues to be as hilarious as Begbie was back in the day. Ewen Bremner as Spud shines the most for me, was given great development and became such a pivotal part of this sequel. I was really surprised to see Johnny Lee Miller give a great performance, as it is only recently that he has got back into movie acting after being busy with a TV series. Another thing some sections of the audience like to see with sequels, is the level of nostalgia. The use of that and memory was cleverly done. It felt like it meant something, instead of just making us think "I'd rather be watching the original". I have only very minor negatives. There were moments that felt a bit scattered at times and did not feel that well connected to the main story. I was not expecting this to be so enjoyable. Boyle and his done have done a great job by keeping this a down-to-earth story and making feel like it deserves a second installment. I think what the films big strengths are, is what made the original so successful. The characters are still as memorable as ever, the writing is sharp and funny when needed, the visuals are engrossing and impactful, and the soundtrack is strong. They also managed to make the film worth seeing for people who haven't even seen the original, which was impressive to see. When you think about it, a lot of Danny Boyle's work is about friendship, and this one is no different. I will continue to be excited for his next project, after making what will probably one of the big surprises of 2017. What a start to the year! Rating: 8/10

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• Seriously?

  ghykal-343-9033502017-03-30

  What's up with all the rave reviews? Look, it's not the worst movie ever made, but it's one of the most pointless. The first was a force of nature that gripped you from the beginning and took you on an adventure in a world foreign to most of us. And it was hilarious, filled with unforgettable scenes and belly laughs. This sequel is a nostalgic, where are they know, look back at the main characters from the original. It starts out choppy, never picks up a real driving force, and kind of meanders around until it finds a way to end. Begbie is supposed to be the villain that makes this thing move, but the rest of the crew aren't stupid kids anymore, and the fear he instills in the other characters just doesn't seem genuine. The Veronika character seems so forced. There's no groundwork laid to set up her relationship with Sick Boy or Renton. Her character is just too wise and put together to be a hooker hanging out with this sad lot of old junkies. Trainspotting had a compelling dynamic based on doomed friendships of young junkies, and the attempt to escape the impending doom by the protagonist. There was a force driving the movie from start to end. And there were non-stop laughs along the way mixed in with junkie philosophy and trippy drug-fueled scenes. That's all missing in this sad sequel, which walks in the footsteps of its predecessor, half-heartedly mimicking it. I wish I had just watched the first one again instead.

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• No disappointments here!!

  karlperci2018-12-11

  It's just hard to think that 20 years and these people can just jump back in to it!! By far one of the best sequels to any film!!!

• T2 Trainspotting

  showmethemoviescontact2017-02-10

  An immensely challenging sequel to produce; Danny Boyle's reprisal was never going to satisfy old fans and newcomers alike. After twenty years, there would be obvious ambiguity in how to go about writing and directing this cult-classics' sequel. 2017 is brimming with sequels of both original movies and installments to well-established series; thus this may be a recurring issue in the near future. T2 Trainspotting is very clearly a movie made for the fans of the original, for people who loved the first film but haven't watched it in years, and have fond memories of it. This film preys upon the fact that some people will be so wound up in their own nostalgia that they won't give this film the independence from the original it needed. T2 struggles to declare itself a story of its own; literal scenes from the original Trainspotting are shown to portray a reflection on the past repeating itself; but all that this shows is an unwillingness to write a completely original plot. It is likely Danny Boyle did this to appease fans, as going in a completely different direction would then annoy those who are devoted to the first film. The story has a great premise; the Mark Renton (Ewan McGregor) returns to Scotland and meets with the lovable Spud (Ewen Bremner) and best-pal Simon (Jonny Lee Miller) once again - much to their initial disgust. Not long after, the return of Begbie (Robert Carlyle) fills the plot with more drama than a soap opera. The events that take place are mostly for comedic purpose, under the premise that the audience already know the characters (fair to assume, but not taking into account standalone viewers). A specific scene in which Simon and Mark are forced to perform a song in a loyalist pub had me laughing out loud in the cinema; so often the attempts at making the film light- hearted were received with a good response. That being said, one of the things about the original is that it wasn't light hearted in the slightest. The characters were the only thing lovable about the film, not what happened to them necessarily, whereas T2 swaps this around - the environments were far more ostentatious in this film, bright neon lighting and fewer disgusting and dull backdrops make for a more optimistic view in this film - quite the opposite of what the original was about. It seems in trying to appease the fans of the original and placing the same characters in a repetitive-yet more flamboyant setting has managed to stray from the roots of what made Trainspotting great. T2 could have been set anywhere provided the main characters still acted in the way that they do, and that's a shame - every piece of Trainspotting was necessary to put together the plot that was made. Despite all of this - T2 is a good film. It's not a great film, but it certainly isn't awful either. Its' greatest failing is that it can't decide whether to create an entirely new story - which would abandon the roots of the original - or to re-hash Trainspotting - which would be total cowardice. The film does the worst of both worlds, in that it doesn't have a great deal of original thought but it also doesn't capture what the first film did. On its own merits, T2 is a funny film; and it is enjoyable to watch. I didn't leave the theatre as disappointed as I would have anticipated, and the film didn't fail to put a smile on my face during. Despite the 20 year gap, the actors clearly haven't lost track of their alter-ego's nature - the performances were great and the chemistry that the actors had was immense, with a gleaming nod to Robert Carlyle. I can still say I recommend T2, its not like the original in terms of quality or theme, but I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy myself. I can make an odd comparison to another sequel, Aliens, in that both T2 and Aliens are very enjoyable, but both films also spoil the point of their predecessor in a sense.

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