Trainspotting (1996) on Netflix
Mark Renton, an unemployed heroin addict in Leith, uses drugs with Sick Boy and Spud, while Begbie and Tommy steer clear of heroin. Tired of the habit, he tries to quit.
- Netflix3.8/5
- IMDb8.1/10774,870 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes90%
Trailer
Plot summary
Mark Renton is 26, unemployed and addicted to heroin, living with his parents in Leith. He uses with Simon "Sick Boy" Williamson and Daniel "Spud" Murphy, while two other friends, the aggressive alcoholic Francis "Franco" Begbie and the footballer Thomas "Tommy" Mackenzie, stay off the drug and warn him about it. Tiring of the life, Renton tries to come off heroin in a bare room with food and opium suppositories from dealer Mikey Forrester. On a night out he notices his libido has returned after stopping, seduces Diane Coulston and returns to her home. In the morning he learns that she is underage and still lives with her parents, whose home he had taken for a shared flat, and that she will go to the police if he ends the relationship.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Trainspotting (1996)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Danny Boyle asked Oasis to contribute a song to the Trainspotting soundtrack, but Noel Gallagher turned him down because he mistakenly thought the film would be about actual trainspotters.
- During the 1996 U.S. presidential campaign, Senator Bob Dole accused Trainspotting of moral depravity and of glorifying and romanticising drug use, although he later admitted he had not seen the film.
- The faeces in the 'Worst Toilet in Scotland' scene was made from chocolate, and the shot of Renton sinking into the floor after an overdose used a platform built above a trap door that lowered Ewan McGregor down.
- Although Trainspotting is set in Edinburgh, almost the entirety of it was shot in Glasgow; the only scene actually filmed in Edinburgh was the opening chase scene.
- Ewan McGregor read books about crack and heroin to prepare to play Renton, met recovering addicts from Glasgow's Calton Athletic Recovery Group, who play the opposing football team in the opening credits, and was taught to cook up heroin with a spoon and glucose powder. He considered injecting heroin but decided against it.
- Danny Boyle considered casting Christopher Eccleston as Begbie, then asked Robert Carlyle, who was hesitant because he believed he was too short for the part until Boyle told him, "No, small psychos are better."
- For the part of Diane, Danny Boyle wanted an unknown actress so audiences would not realize a 19-year-old was playing a 15-year-old; the filmmakers sent flyers to nightclubs and boutiques and hired Kelly Macdonald.
- Ewen Bremner had played Renton in the stage adaptation of Trainspotting, but in the film he agreed to take the role of Spud instead, saying he felt the characters "were part of my heritage".
