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  Directed by
  Starring
  Specs
  • Widescreen 1.85:1
  • 16:9 Enhanced
  • Dual Layer (RSDL 55:22)
  Languages
  • English: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
  • English: DTS 5.1 Surround
  Subtitles
    English
  Extras
  • Deleted scenes
  • Teaser trailer
  • Theatrical trailer
  • Audio commentary
  • 9 Cast/crew biographies - Text only
  • 3 Featurette
  • Animated menus
  • 6 Interviews

Trainspotting - The Definitive Edition

Universal/Universal . R4 . COLOR . 90 mins . R . PAL

  Feature
Contract

When it was released in 1995, Trainspotting was hailed by some as both an open and honest look at the life of a heroin addict, and criticised by others for somewhat glamourising heroin. I can see why both opinions exist, but those who believe it is just a bit of a laugh and a look at a few losers who should know better have largely missed the point.

The film focuses on the erratic days of Mark Renton, unemployed heroin addict and all-round bad boy. His mates are Sick Boy (John Lee Miller), Tommy (Kevin McKidd), Spud (Ewen Bremner), and terminal psycho Begbie (Robert Carlyle). All but Begbie have addictions, although Tommy only turns to heroin after his girl dumps him.

Their days are spent scoring hits, or stealing stuff to sell. Their days pretty much run as a blur, and despite their misery and lack of a decent future, only Renton has any real desire to ‘get clean’, something he does several times only to lapse back into the routine.

When Renton finally decides enough is enough, he moves from Edinburgh and lands a job in real estate. Being away from his ‘mates’ is working well, until Begbie and Spud housecrash. Begbie is on the run, and while Renton doesn’t feel strong enough to turf them 'cause they are mates, it is clear he doesn’t want them there either.

When the boys come into some decent ‘gear’, and sell it to a dealer, they think their prayers are answered. But money can do strange things to people, especially when you’ve never had any, and Renton in particular is faced with a tough decision. Sadly, not all the characters make it to the end of the film, but those that do end up with mixed fortunes.

Trainspotting gives a very balanced and real look at life as far as heroin addiction goes, from the undignified to the plain old disgusting. The scene where Renton is fishing around his own excrement in the “worst toilet in Scotland’, in a desperate attempt to get back some opium suppositories, is truly disturbing. There are some double edged scenes included such as the ‘morning after” at the breakfast table where Spud is trying to hide his ‘soiled’ sheets from the happy family.

The cast are excellent, there is some seriously good editing and direction, and some wonderfully scripted dialogue. The soundtrack timeframes the film in the ‘80s, with some interesting and excellent song choices.

Those with weak stomachs, and weak ears, will probably not enjoy Trainspotting. The laughs are dispersed with very graphic and eye-opening images of the hold that drugs can have on addicts. While some may claim this film almost trivialises the tragedy of addiction, and at best gives the audience something to laugh at, they are really missing the point. The point being that an addiction to anything is a tough habit to break, and almost certainly destroys ones chances of a ‘clean’ life, and not even having mates can compensate for that.

  Video
Contract

There have been some significant improvements made since the first release of this title on DVD. Featuring an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 (16:9 enhanced), there are no serious flaws, but a few minor ones that should not concern most. Overall the image is well-defined with good colouring and skin tones. There is some noise evident, but no colour-bleeding.

Black levels exhibit some evidence of noise. Grain is generally acceptable, but there is some slightly distracting edge enhancement. Shimmer is occasionally discernable on objects such as rollerdoors and the occasional patterned shirt. There are some white flecks that pop up infrequently, but little in the way of dirt.

The layer change is placed between scenes, but is noticeable at 52.22 mainly because of the pause in the soundtrack. The burned-in subtitles during the club scene are still there, but I question whether they are needed.

  Audio
Contract

There are two fine audio choices being a Dolby 5.1 and a DTS 5.1. Both are very good, but the DTS is the track of choice for the additional ‘oomph’ and slightly more spacious sound. Almost all dialogue is placed in the centre speaker, with most sound effects and noises spaced equally along the front. The rears are used extensively for the music, and some ambience in the crowded bar scenes.

There are no issues with synchronisation or clarity, although sometimes the thick Scottish accent makes things a bit tough. Low-level sounds are most evident in the club scenes where the dance music really works the subwoofer. Generally, the audio is well spaced and well-balanced.

  Extras
Contract

There are enough extras included to warrant this being a two-disc set, and they offer good variety. It has to be said too that the menu on disc one is not the most user-friendly I have encountered.

Disc one has an audio commentary from the director Danny Boyle, producer Andrew MacDonald, screenwriter John Hodge, and is hosted by Ewan McGregor. This is not a new commentary and was recorded in 1996 not long after the film was completed. They do make a lot of reference to the action on screen, as well as the usual information and anecdotes on filming, casting, character development, that ‘toilet’ scene, as well as the success of the film in general. There are a few short pauses along the way, but nothing overly lengthy.

The deleted scenes run for just under ten minutes and must be chosen individually, or they can be accessed while watching the feature when an icon appears. Each comes with an optional commentary from the same commentary team, but listened to in isolation are not as easy to follow. When watched with the whole commentary, they flow nicely. They are of varying picture quality however, and none match the quality of the feature.

The Beginning at just under ten minutes does repeat some of the film in its analysis of the beginnings of the story. The input is from the cast and crew.

Disc two houses the various extras that are not so easy to categorise, but are all worthy. They are full frame and in Dolby stereo unless noted otherwise.

The disc kicks off with Retrospective, which breaks down into sections called Look of the Film, Sound of the Film, Interviews, and Behind the Needle. These are all essentially interviews and the first two have 'then' and 'now' comparisons from the appropriate crew discussing design and the music and run for approximately 20 minutes. Interviews with the director, producer, writer and screenwriter are a lot longer at a combined time of over 30 minutes, and each shares a great deal on their related area. There is use of split-screen and camera angle varying the look which is a good thing, and all are quite informative and open without being overly sycophantic. The last mini-feature, Behind the Needle is a 6:21 minute multi-angle dissection of the 'shooting up' scene and a quick interview with Ewan McGregor.

There are some biographies on offer of nine of the main cast and crew. All are very brief at just one page each but differ from those found on the original DVD release of Trainspotting.

Cannes is an interesting but brief addition. While the film itself wasn't entered in the 1996 competition, it was screened. There are four 'red carpet' interviews with Martin Landau, Noel "mono-brow" Gallagher of Oasis, Blur's Damon Albarn, and main man Ewan McGregor. There is a brief piece of footage called Cannes Snapshot which is a set of interviews with the afterparty people.

The DVD standard, gallery, is included running a little over five minutes but leading us through many shots of all manner of people while a version of Atomic by Sleeper plays in the background. Quite cool actually for a gallery, as these things are usually rather dull.

Disc Two also houses an Easter egg of some interview footage that talks about the potential for a sequel.

Lastly, there are some trailers of the 'teaser' and 'theatrical' type. The teaser trailer doesn't have great audio or video quality, but both are cool attempts to promote the film.

  Overall  
Contract

After watching the film and all the extras there is almost nothing about Trainspotting left to know. It is a fine film that has been given the DVD treatment it deserves. It also has a cool soundtrack that augments the film significantly. This is superior to any Region 1 version (so far) and to the best of my knowledge is identical to the Region 2 version. This is a definite inclusion for most DVD collections.


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      And I quote...
    "An excellent film about mateship and heroin addiction. With a swag of extras, this is a DVD for any collection..."
    - Terry Kemp
      Review Equipment
    • DVD Player:
          Akai
    • TV:
          TEAC CT-F803 80cm Super Flat Screen
    • Receiver:
          Pioneer VSX-D409
    • Speakers:
          Wellings
    • Centre Speaker:
          Wellings
    • Surrounds:
          Wellings
    • Subwoofer:
          Sherwood SP 210W
    • Audio Cables:
          Standard RCA
    • Video Cables:
          standard s-video
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