Trainspotting (1996)

The film has the rather odd ability to waver drastically between outright slapstick (albeit some genuinely horrifying slapstick) and complete and utter tragedy. What unifies the film and establishes its very unique voice is the ferocious lead performance by a then very young (and largely unknown) Ewan McGregor. Once again as with Malcolm McDowell's Alex in A Clockwork Orange, McGregor evokes a seemingly carefree character who knows full well he's a maladjusted punk but who don't really care that much. There's a certain sanguine quality to McGregor's portrayal (as well as McDowell's, frankly) that helps to establish the film's weird manic-depressive tone that alternates between bizarre comic bits and almost melodramatic elements.

Though McGregor reaped the greatest bounty of critical acclaim when the film came out, there's no dearth of brilliant supporting work here from some fantastic Scottish actors, some of whom (like Kelly McDonald) were making their film debuts. In a sterling cast, keep your eye on the incredible Robert Carlyle, and compare his vicious, visceral performance in this film with his complete opposite turn in The Full Monty. Trainspotting also has some pithy commentary on Scotland's most famous film export, a certain Sean Connery.

Trainspotting does devolve into literal potty humor a couple of times and there are several other scenes which many viewers will find troubling at the very least. But it's to the immense credit of director Boyle and screenwriter John Hodge that amidst all this horrifying detritus of wasted human potential there's an element of decency and good that somehow manages to (just barely) shine through. Renton may not know how to get there, but he's aiming for something better. His repeated attempts to get off smack may not be successful (and certainly aren't helped either by his friends or his clueless parents, parents who, yes, might have come directly from A Clockwork Orange), but he sees some kind of light at the end of his hallucinatory tunnel. When he hitches his star to an illicit scheme that provides him with the chance to bring home some serious bacon and then engages in a not so minor act of betrayal, Renton's narration doesn't try to make excuses and simply concludes that he's not a good person. While it's hard to argue very effectively with that assessment, against all odds Trainspotting posits Renton as redeemable, if only barely.