I remember when it came out, it was quite the hit. Having seen it many years later for the first time, I thought it was ok.
Can someone please explain why it was so popular ?
Thanks
Fucking losers is all.
shareThe creative imagery and good sound track impressed me so much I bought the movie. I also liked the acting and script.
Initially, I avoided watching it for years because of the dreary heroin addicts subject.
Remember this is around the time of Britpop era and everything British was cool, and Trainspotting crashed down in the middle of that era. And Danny Boyle had a big hit and massive acclaim with Ewan McGregor with the excellent Shallow Grave too back in 1994. So people were hyped for his next film. So you had a hot director, with great up and coming British actor and a soundtrack with classics like Iggy Pop, New Order and Brian Eno, Britpop acts (Blur, Pulp, Sleeper) and Dance tunes (I remember the soundtrack was so popular, it even got a sequel a year later).
For many OP it's seen as a British classic and rightly so imo. Amazing considering the source material is more short stories then straight linear like the film is. Great performances from all the cast, I don't think Robert Carlyle, Johnny Lee Miller or Ewen Bremmer have ever been better then in this film. It cemented Ewan McGregor a career as a leading man and Danny Boyle as a A List director. From a budget of 1.5 million it made 72 million worldwide. That's crazy.
It's amazing today that it even made that much considering how bleak and hard hitting it was. I remember at the time many thought it made heroin addiction cool, but when you see the film that's not the case at all.
thanks. appreciate your thoughts.
shareYeah, just to echo what you said in your last sentence, I remember this causing a bit of a stir at the time with the perception from some that it glamourised drug addiction. It was the first sort of big movie that dealt almost entirely in this subject matter. I often think controversy like that can help popularise a film, and like you said about the Britpop era, what this film had to say; the music, the ethos, the imagery, I think this resonated with people back then.
shareThe book.
sharetechno was big at the time too, overall its an icon of a movie.
shareYeah I just watched this today after not seeing it since 1996 and man I loved it back then at age 19. Now at 47, it's kinda almost pointless. Still done very well, but there's no moral or point to the story really. It's almost like one of those indie black comedies from the mid 2000's they made thousands of that are kinda forgettable at this point like Little Miss Sunshine, Our Idiot Brother or It's Kinda A Funny Story except with Scots and drugs.
sharei rented it on VHS with subtitles