Right from the start, T2 Trainspotting—sequel to the 1996
black comedy drama Trainspotting—has
a very exceptional premise. It’s rare to
see a sequel in the “hood film”
genre, and while some will argue Trainspotting
doesn’t belong in such category, I’d counter there’s enough elements there (drug
use, trafficking, broken families, violence, a focus on young men
struggling/coming of age, etc.) for the film to classify. T2
is set 20 years after the first film with a “where are they now” concept: expanding
upon the original by offering both affectionate nostalgia and refreshing new
themes that actually improve upon Trainspotting’s
story and characters. Ambiguity can be
effective when it comes to “will these characters ultimately escape their destructive
lifestyles?” yet there are times where it’s even better to see such question
explored—which is exactly what T2 does: granting a very unique
opportunity to see how Trainspotting’s
characters have grown since the 90s.
MAJOR SPOILERS FOR BOTH TRAINSPOTTING
AND T2 FROM THIS POINT ONWARD:
A major theme in Trainspotting is how heroin can overtake
friends and family: becoming a person’s way of enjoying and coping with life, in
addition to being their way of existing/interacting with reality. The other
theme the film expresses (or at least how I view it) is how friendship is a
fabricated concept based around self-centered needs. In the first film, the characters never come
across as genuine friends, but rather fellow junkies and/or punks who either: enjoy one another’s misery, use one another to benefit their own life, or, in
Franco’s (Robert Carlyle) case, have people to gloat about/witness his
narcissistic, psychotic lifestyle. They’re
never really there for one another, and throughout the film use their “friends”
for personal gain and/or stab them in the back.
If a character needs comfort/mental support, they find it from a needle
instead of a person.
There’s a significant scene where Mark
(Ewan McGregor) is surrounded by his friends and family, yet thinks how he’s
never felt more alone—sneaking away to buy some heroin, the drug that has always
been there to take his worries away (his “true friend”, which, incidentally,
causes him to overdose in the next scene).
The film contains some rather bleak messages about addiction and friendship (though
such themes are effectively balanced by its witty black comedy and creative cinematography), with
Mark only being able to break free from his self-destructive lifestyle by
completely leaving his friends and past behind.
Comparing their major themes, T2
goes for quite the reverse approach.
Whereas Trainspotting focuses
on self-destructive behavior, escaping life’s issues through narcotics, and the
fabricated outlook of friendship, T2
focuses on reparative behavior, facing one’s problems head-on, and how
friendship can save one from self-destruction.
The sequel explores a now older, more experienced cast of characters: examining
how their past has affected them and still affects them. They are more self-aware of their
flaws (even gaining a few new ones), and more willing—even if
subconsciously—to seek and simultaneously give help/comfort to others.
In Trainspotting, I didn’t care for Spud, Simon (Jonny Lee Miller),
and (especially) Franco—them living or dying, succeeding or failing, took
second fiddle to the story’s themes, comedy and style. T2 breathes
new life into these characters: expanding their personalities, repairing and
strengthening relationships, giving additional backstory, and having them
experience massive character growth. Mark
is the catalyst for change within these three, and by the end he, Spud and
Simon appear to have a genuine friendship that was missing from their younger
years. Even Franco, the deranged, violent-loving
psychopath receives a surprising amount of development while still retaining
his unhinged side. In the original,
Franco was king of the hill: using brute force and wild assertiveness to get
whatever he wanted. Now middle aged, the
brute finds himself lost in the modern world with his growing array of faults
becoming harder to disregard—such as being unable to relate/connect with his
son and having trouble "getting it up".
Franco is forced to face such faults head on, with one ending on an
unexpectedly touching note. By the
sequel’s last third I actually grew to care about the characters (even Franco), desiring
to see them succeed, find peace, and/or not die. Spud, in particular—who I cared for little in the original—became a very endearing character who I was genuinely terrified Franco
would kill (or would kill himself), and was extremely pleased to see receive as
close to a happy ending as you can get in this series.
The sequel’s female lead Veronika (Anjela Nedyalkova) is far
superior to Trainspotting’s Diana
(Kelly Macdonald) for a variety of reasons.
She receives more screen time, more character development, more
background, has more personal involvement with the plot and supporting
characters, and possesses a far more charming personality. In terms of humor, T2 rivals the original with witty black comedy. My favorite scenes include the discussion
with Diana about various body parts and solicitor fees, the unexpected reunion
between Mark and Franco on the john (which was absolutely hilarious), and when
Mark and Simon improvise an anti-Catholic tune to appease a unionist pub (as a
Catholic myself, I got a real chuckle out of the duo’s continuous reprisal of "There were no Catholics left!")
T2
retains the same surreal style as the original, though with the advancements in
technology, such techniques are no longer as remarkable. Nonetheless, the style that is utilized is still very creative and unique, such as Spud’s near-suicide being portrayed as
him falling off a building, only to be saved last minute by Mark diving
underneath with a pillow. T2’s nostalgic referencing to the
original are done just right: being brief in their mentions while not relying
on them to sustain the plot. In the few
instances where such nods are
significant, they’re executed in a noticeably powerful manner. The best example is the “Choose Life” monologue Mark
reiterates to Veronika; in the original, I never fully grasped the meaning
behind why Mark would go off on Choose Life rants, yet in T2, Mark explains the meaning (to both the unaware Veronika and
myself) behind such slogan in a powerful scene that feels more expressive, emotional,
and bittersweet than before.
T2
Trainspotting goes for a very different approach than the original, and it
pays off. The sequel has far more
sympathetic themes towards family and friends—repairing bonds and developing characters. The returning characters are far more
enjoyable and empathetic, the newcomers improve upon their replacements, and
there’s a very satisfying feeling by the conclusion, all the while not completely fixing
the characters’s issues and ending hunky-dory. The film’s last third really
empathizes such positives—the discussions/confrontations between Spud
and Franco, Veronika and Spud, Spud and his ex-wife, Mark and Franco, Franco
and his family, Simon and Mark, etc. all expressively showcase the sequel's improvements. 20 years was the perfect gap in time to come
back and reexamine these characters’s lives (a shorter timeskip, say 5 years,
would have been far less potent). T2 is not only a well-made sequel, but an
overall superior film that strengthens and improves upon the original.
