Featured Audience Ratings

• Kase V

  
  Danny Boyle's sophomore bout 'Trainspotting' is a superbly well made film a brisk pace, great performances, and a fully engaging plot. Full of comedy and pathos, 'Trainspotting' is a equal parts satisfying and poignant.

• Al S

  
  A true sensation that`s awesome, brilliant, electrifying, stylish, hilarious and outstanding. A great and absolutely original triumph. A flat out insane experience. An endlessly enjoyable and unforgettable movie. It packs on amazing power, humor and terrific performances by it's… More
  A true sensation that`s awesome, brilliant, electrifying, stylish, hilarious and outstanding. A great and absolutely original triumph. A flat out insane experience. An endlessly enjoyable and unforgettable movie. It packs on amazing power, humor and terrific performances by it's cast. An electrifying film. Director, Danny Boyle has crafted a dazzling film classic that is something of a special masterpiece. A wickedly funny, terrifically compelling and superbly entertaining film. An excellent piece of work that's hip and brutally honest. It has a great soundtrack that has seductive groove all on it`s own.

• Directors C

  
  [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon14.gif[/img] This is an entertaining debate on the ups and downs of hard drugs, following the story of Mark Renton. Somebody who has a strange and complicated Malcolm McDowell in "A Clockwork Orange", let's… More
  [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon14.gif[/img] This is an entertaining debate on the ups and downs of hard drugs, following the story of Mark Renton. Somebody who has a strange and complicated Malcolm McDowell in "A Clockwork Orange", let's say, existence, rather than life. The film is a fantastic debut feature from Danny Boyle. Though it might slip your mind when the harshly dismal and slimy experience of viewing it ends, regardless, whilst your in the company of Trainspotting, you'd think twice about doing anything. And honestly that is a compliment, it is neither an anti drug film, nor a promotion of heroin usage. But rather a truthful insight into the lives of drug addicts during an economically depressed time in 1980's Scotland. Although at times terrifying the black humour nevertheless works. It might seem like niche art house fare, but the comedy can work for pretty much anyone. Danny Boyle's direction is truly outstanding, his inventive script is also fast, witty and deserving of it's Academy Award nomination. Not to mention some great performances from it's fresh cast of actors. Entirely deserving of it's great reputation. As what Boyle has managed to do is change a difficult subject matter and mould it into a hilarious, entertaining, and rightfully scary filmgoing experience. A real eye opener but in addition a piece of aesthetically significant poetry. If you don't like art house, it makes no difference. It's visuals can be a bit too ugly but this minor issue is ultimately forgivable. I'd find it hard to imagine anyone who is unable to identify any of it's various other triumphs.

• Lucas M

  
  A fast, funny, scary and realistic brutal portrait on the life of youth in an economically depressed Edinburgh, where Renton and his 'so-called mates' abuse strongly of drugs in hope of alleviate the maturity pains and they own miserable lives. Trainspotting also bring a… More
  A fast, funny, scary and realistic brutal portrait on the life of youth in an economically depressed Edinburgh, where Renton and his 'so-called mates' abuse strongly of drugs in hope of alleviate the maturity pains and they own miserable lives. Trainspotting also bring a view into AIDS, sexuality and violence culture, without forget the eclectic soundtrack. One of the best Danny Boyle's films. Fresh.

• Jeff "

  
  Danny Boyle's Trainspotting is a near flawless film with a great cast. The film manages to be darkly humorous as well as serious. Danny Boyle has made great films, and Trainspotting shows exactly what makes him such a great, versatile director. The film is truly unique and very… More
  Danny Boyle's Trainspotting is a near flawless film with a great cast. The film manages to be darkly humorous as well as serious. Danny Boyle has made great films, and Trainspotting shows exactly what makes him such a great, versatile director. The film is truly unique and very entertaining. The cast are truly wonderful and each actor brings something terrific to the screen. The film is well directed and has enough going on on-screen to keep you interested. The film has great characters and you see how they cope with their heroin addiction. Danny Boyle has always made great pictures and Trainspotting is no different. I very much enjoyed the film and thought that this was one of Boyle's best works. The cast make it work and with effective directing and a great script, it's no wonder why the film has gotten the praise that it has. This is a well executed film that just keeps you interested from start to finish. If you love Danny Boyle's work, you should check this film out. The performances that stood out for me were that of Ewan McGregor and Robert Carlyle. Trainspotting is a terrific film that is brilliantly directed. I very much recommend this film and this is a must see for Boyle fans. This is a work of drama, comedy and the way it intertwines into one plot is what makes this a truly unique film. Trainspotting has an effective script that keeps you interested from start to finish. Simply a brilliant, well constructed film.

• Eric S

  
  Very disturbing portrayal of drug addiction. Danny Boyle did a great job with this film. From the style, the characters, and themes, almost everything is perfect. Not so much a story as it is a character study, and at that it succeeds. The soundtrack is also top-notch, with tracks… More
  Very disturbing portrayal of drug addiction. Danny Boyle did a great job with this film. From the style, the characters, and themes, almost everything is perfect. Not so much a story as it is a character study, and at that it succeeds. The soundtrack is also top-notch, with tracks from New Order and Iggy Pop. It's a unique film.

• Melvin W

  
  Mark "Rent-boy" Renton: People think it's all about misery and desperation and death and all that shit which is not to be ignored, but what they forget is the pleasure of it. Otherwise we wouldn't do it. After all, we're not fucking stupid. At least,… More
  Mark "Rent-boy" Renton: People think it's all about misery and desperation and death and all that shit which is not to be ignored, but what they forget is the pleasure of it. Otherwise we wouldn't do it. After all, we're not fucking stupid. At least, we're not that fucking stupid.  "Never let your friends tie you to the tracks." Definitely a top tier drug film. It's like a mixture of Van Sant's Drugstore Cowboy and Aronofsky's Requiem For a Dream. It's a movie that doesn't glorify or totally condemn drug use. It's where most people are on the issue in-between. That isn't to say that there isn't consequences for the drug use seen in this film. Danny Boyle brings out the consequences just as much as he brings out the thrills. But to an addict, the consequences are outweighed by just how great the feeling is. Like Rent Boy says, "They're not that stupid." People sometimes forget that there's a reason people got hooked on a substance, they liked it. That's what this movie reminds us of. Trainspotting presents the story of some young men in Scotland who are deep into heroin. Our main character, Rent Boy is played by Ewan McGregor in another stunning role. He's a heroin addict that pretty much sums up the experience of being hooked on heroin just by looking at him. When he's high, he's fine. When he isn't high, he has that look where he just doesn't know what to do. He's got to get high. He's got to score, at whatever cost. Then he scores and he says the patented drug addict verbiage, "This is the last hit." It's always the last hit, then the next time is the last hit. Then I'll really quit. Then I quit for awhile, but now I just need a taste. A taste for old times sake. Then I'm done forever. Do you believe me? McGregor plays this role perfectly and I can tell that because at the end, I honestly want to believe him. He says he's going to change, he's going to stay clean. He isn't going to touch it anymore. He's going to be like you and me. He's that friend you have that says the same thing to you in real life. You look at him and he looks like he's telling the truth. He looks like he really wants to be done. You want to believe him so badly. The only problem is this is the fifteenth time he's said it. Has it happened yet. Nope. You know deep down, this isn't the last time. He's just saying what he has to say. That's what I love about Trainspotting, just how honest a portrayal of the drug scene it is. People who says it glorifies the drug scene are stupid, but people who says it's an anti-drug film are missing the point too. This isn't about the rights and wrongs of drug usage. This is about the addict. He shouldn't have to be someone that tells us heroin is bad, and guess what he doesn't. Funny that, a movie about a drug addict not telling us straight out that drugs are terrible. Of course it isn't, the person with whom is narrating our story loves them.  Easily one of the best drug related films I have ever seen. It's devastating, but funny. Sad, but exciting. It's a film that defies all logic because a heroin addicts life defies all logic. It's a movie with style and fun scenes because when you get high, you have fun. That's why they do it. Well, until the point where they just have to do it to be normal. 

• Randy T

  
  Boyle rummages through the trash heap of heroin addiction and exposes a bit of humor and humanity. Contrary to what's been written in various reviews, <i>Trainspotting</i> doesn't glorify the junkie lifestyle but it does present it with flair and pugnacity.

• Sophie B

  
  I can understand why people may like this film as it has some really good acting however the story just wasn't for me. I can't relate to drug culture, crazy actions, poverty in Edinburgh or going cold turkey. By the end I was glad it was over!

• Sam B

  
  Gross yet stylish, Transporting is visually fascinating and constantly energetic. I didn't much appreciate the (undoubtedly intentional) uncomfortable shifts between humor and disgustingness, but if you don't mind disturbing realism, you can't really go wrong with this… More
  Gross yet stylish, Transporting is visually fascinating and constantly energetic. I didn't much appreciate the (undoubtedly intentional) uncomfortable shifts between humor and disgustingness, but if you don't mind disturbing realism, you can't really go wrong with this captivating and realistic portrayal of the darkest edge of society.

• J P

  
  I really liked this movie. It's been on my instant queue for like ever now, but I finally got a chance to watch it the other night. I think this movie really gives an interesting perspective on drug addiction and life. The acting and directing was amazing. I really enjoyed it.… More
  I really liked this movie. It's been on my instant queue for like ever now, but I finally got a chance to watch it the other night. I think this movie really gives an interesting perspective on drug addiction and life. The acting and directing was amazing. I really enjoyed it. There's a lot of comedic moments, as well as tragic ones. It's a very realistic movie (with a good ending) about a group of people who struggle with their drug addiction.

• Daniel P

  
  It might be my favourite movie ever, and every time I watch it I see something new. Based on an amazing novel, this is one of the rawest films I've ever seen and it's at once exhilirating and terrifying. A seminal film of the 90s with a soundtrack among the best ever… More
  It might be my favourite movie ever, and every time I watch it I see something new. Based on an amazing novel, this is one of the rawest films I've ever seen and it's at once exhilirating and terrifying. A seminal film of the 90s with a soundtrack among the best ever assembled, the movie is humor laced with horror - sort of like the drug addiction it uses as its subject, I would think. For everyone getting in on the No Country for Old Men hype, here's where Kelly MacDonald made her start... yeah, she's not Texan, just Scottish and ridiculously talented. Probably Ewan MacGregor's best movie, and when I read the book a couple of years after first seeing it, while I could imagine most of the characters a little differently, I couldn't shake Begbie's image from my head, which I think stands as a tribute to Robert Carlyle's performance. I could go on for days about this one, but it's a truly outstanding piece of art.

• Jameson W

  
  So excellent...

• Phil H

  
  Probably the first British film to hit the bigtime after 'Four Weddings' and boy does it! talk about in your face. I've never read the book so I have no idea how it compares but the film seems to have been accepted pretty well with no complaints. When I first saw this… More
  Probably the first British film to hit the bigtime after 'Four Weddings' and boy does it! talk about in your face. I've never read the book so I have no idea how it compares but the film seems to have been accepted pretty well with no complaints. When I first saw this film I really didn't like it to be honest, it was bleak and kinda depressing plus I was young, naive about drugs and unsure of the films presentation and style. After watching recently I must admit I do enjoy the dark gallows type humour with sickening visuals, it does seem to engage and hold your attention very well, much like a car wreck, you don't wanna look yet you can't turn away hehe. The cast really make the film what it is basically, the direction by Boyle is impressive and he knows what he wants looks wise but the main leads are terrific in their performances as they repulse you and charm you. McGregor is superb as 'Renton' and looks wonderfully pale, skinny and gaunt yet also makes the 'heroin look' kinda cool at the same time, a cult character and look for sure in cinematic history. After that Carlyle as 'Begbie' is much like a new Pesci with his small slim frame and wildfire rage from within that is both amusing and scary, Miller as 'Sickboy' is probably the funniest of the bunch with his natty [i]Connery[/i] impressions and lastly Bremner as 'Spud' fits the druggie bunch perfectly with his 'Jack Skellington' profile and whip fast speech that is probably the strongest accent in the film. I think one of the best things about the film is the lack of understanding with the dialog and Scottish slang, for anyone outside the UK it will be near impossible to understand I'm willing to bet haha its hard enough for me being British but it all adds to the total gritty realism and down to earth, edgy, streetwise vibe that you feel from the flick, seeing Begbie get into scraps whilst shouting every swear word under the sun is really very watchable despite being crass. I see this as an almost Tarantino-esq style film really with its disjointed approach and over the top colourful characters (with odd names), even the films posters were abit 'Reservoir Dogs like' in their design. Very much a character driven film with plenty of little plots buzzing around the main plot which happens to be about drug addiction, I tend to overlook the drug side and just enjoy the little sub plots going on which include some great surreal visuals. Can be a touch too depressing at times as I said but its certainly extremely unique and most definitely a cult.

• Drake T

  
  A quaint honest tail of a Scottish Junkie, Trainspotting is a stylistically engaging dark comedy showcasing the lives of a niche community without all the usual judgement and disdain. But for all its attempts at insight and social complexity there isn't much of a resonating… More
  A quaint honest tail of a Scottish Junkie, Trainspotting is a stylistically engaging dark comedy showcasing the lives of a niche community without all the usual judgement and disdain. But for all its attempts at insight and social complexity there isn't much of a resonating story or message, or at least it's not very clear. Still, it's this open forum of intrigue that really reveals this film to "deep" thinkers. It's entertaining, fun, and may or may not spark provoking questions. A good watch!

• Chris W

  
  I once tried reading Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting. I found it unreadable, and only got like a paragraph or two into it. I'm so glad that I can say that this, the film adaptation, is far from unwatchable. Not only that, but it's also one of the greatest and most… More
  I once tried reading Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting. I found it unreadable, and only got like a paragraph or two into it. I'm so glad that I can say that this, the film adaptation, is far from unwatchable. Not only that, but it's also one of the greatest and most influential British films of modern times. Directed masterly and with great energy by Danny Boyle, this film is a stylish and edgy look into the world of Scottish junkies. Thankfully, even though the film is filled with great style, it is, like basically every drug film, a cautionary tale that pulls no punches when it comes to showing how bad things can get when you are addicted to drugs. Parts of it are hard to watch, but, unlike Requiem For A Dream, this is actually got some humor in it, even if it is on the gallows and scatological sides. Ewan McGregor leads a great cast, and, even though none of these characters are really all that likeable or easy to sympathize with, we do kind of feel for them. I love when films are able to do stuff like that. Not only that, but there stories are told in very imaginative ways that utilize some excellent cinematography, editing, and music. This is just one of those films that gets talked about all the time, and it does live up to the hype. In a way, trying to review this film properly is like trying to give a unique and original essay about The Beatles; it's really hard, and all the best things to say have been said already, so just sit back and enjoy.

• Spencer S

  
  Tried and true, the story of drug addiction and the criminal and sociological changes that accompany it are exemplified in this shocking film by none other than director Danny Boyle. Exmaining every aspect, and including such shocking scenes as armed robbery, bar fights, sex tapes,… More
  Tried and true, the story of drug addiction and the criminal and sociological changes that accompany it are exemplified in this shocking film by none other than director Danny Boyle. Exmaining every aspect, and including such shocking scenes as armed robbery, bar fights, sex tapes, and rehabilitation, this is a poignant piece that centers on an idealistic Renton trying for the American dream in a Scottish setting. Through stealing and cheating every addict is out for themselves, the next hit more important than the next set of consequences. A vivid and realistic portrayal by featured actors Ewan McGregor, Kelly MacDonald, Ewen Bremner, and Johnny Lee Miller. Astounding.

• Cassandra M

  
  This film is gritty and dirty. There is content which is not pleasant, swearing and violence amounts other things. What else would you expect a film about drug addiction to be about? Well more than that actually, it about choices and what you Choose! Never at any point did this film… More
  This film is gritty and dirty. There is content which is not pleasant, swearing and violence amounts other things. What else would you expect a film about drug addiction to be about? Well more than that actually, it about choices and what you Choose! Never at any point did this film make drugs look at all appealing to me in any way, I never did understand why so many people thought that it did. At no point did it ever say "Look at this, its cool." For those who think the level of swearing in this film is too much then they clearly haven't spent any time with working class people in Britain, not just Scotland. I being one of them can say its fairly accurate in that account. That being said, those things do not take anything away from the film, the quality of plot and story, or the acting which is Stunning! Robert Carlise as Begbe was excellent, and Ewan MacGregor shined. Also the character Spud was worth a mention he really was quite good. This film is in my Opinion a work of Genius, that represents the book accurately.

• Unknown H

  
  Although it is one of my favorite movies I think it is a little overrated, but as a quintessential capsule of British culture, it is a masterpiece. Sticking relativly well to Irvine Welsh's novel I feel that this movie is one of the ones that you have to see before you die or… More
  Although it is one of my favorite movies I think it is a little overrated, but as a quintessential capsule of British culture, it is a masterpiece. Sticking relativly well to Irvine Welsh's novel I feel that this movie is one of the ones that you have to see before you die or indeed get addicted to heroin :P. As an owner of many different copies of the movie, the t-shirt, the book in many forms, posters and postcards I must say that as cult classics go this one blows irritating exagerrations like Pulp Fiction out of the water.

• Mike S

  
  Danny Boyle's all-time best achievement! When I saw this the first time back in the 90's, I was mostly just grossed out and depressed by it. It simply wasn't my cup of tea. Now that I'm older and wiser, however, I can appreciate it on a whole different level. Sure,… More
  Danny Boyle's all-time best achievement! When I saw this the first time back in the 90's, I was mostly just grossed out and depressed by it. It simply wasn't my cup of tea. Now that I'm older and wiser, however, I can appreciate it on a whole different level. Sure, it's still quite appaling to look at, what with its volatile settings and gag-inducing moments. And the scene with the baby that crawls in the ceiling is yet as creepy as ever. But it's a story told in a really mesmerizing way, and one that came to define the decade in which it was made. Danny Boyle's directing is right on the money and the dialogue as superb as dialogue can be. It's stylish, raw and loaded with interesting characters. I didn't know who Evan McGregor was in those days, nor most of the other cast members, so it's fun to suddenly recognize a lot of faces that were unknown to me before (like <i>Rome's</i> Kevin McKidd for instance). Perfect tempo, pristine acting and a tremendously enjoyable watch. Just be wary of the fact that it's quite a graphic experience. So if you got a sensitive stomach, you might wanna reconsider. To the rest of you though, I'm happy to give it my highest recommendation. For one thing is for sure here: films of this superior quality, certainly don't come in a bundle.

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