My Review: Trainspotting (8/10)

"Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a starter home. Choose dental insurance, leisure wear and matching luggage. Choose your future. But why would anyone want to do a thing like that?"

I have no idea what Trainspotting actually means, but this 1996 Danny Boyle film is truly an entertaining cinematic experience. It's about a group of friends in a small Scottish town who spend their lives getting stoned and having fun. The film isn't afraid to show how exciting their world is when getting high, but at the same time it shows the devastating effects that drugs have on them. It is this balance that Boyle manages to achieve, between the brutal portrayal of drug addiction and the fun and relaxed life these friends seem to be experiencing, what has made audiences worldwide enjoy this film for decades. The energetic 80's soundtrack, the great performances from McGregor, Miller, Carlyle, Bremner, and McKidd, the clever screenplay adaptation by John Hodge from Welsh's novel, and the visual style that Boyle uses is what have turned Trainspotting into such a classic and memorable film. There isn't much going on plot wise in the sense that the film focuses on these five friends who spend pretty much every day getting high and partying, but at the same time there are so many engaging and funny moments that allow for the viewer to relate to these characters. Some of the best moments are the simple ones where we see these characters interact with each other speaking about what toxoplasmosis is, how important it is for them to mess up their job interviews, what their favorite James Bond films are, and what the unifying theory of life actually means. There are so many entertaining moments in the simple dialogues that an actual plot isn't really needed.

The film takes place sometime during the late 80's in a small Scottish town named Edinburgh where five friends spend most of their time getting stoned and having no other cares in the world. Renton (Ewan McGregor) seems content with his life the way it's going despite his parents concern for him to get clean and give up his heroin habit. He realizes it's about time for him to try getting himself together and so he decides to quit his addiction. This decision won't have a lasting effect because he still surrounds himself with his friends: the naive and sincere Spud (Ewen Bremner), Sick Boy (Johnny Lee Miller) who's obsessed with James Bond, the jock Tommy (Kevin McKidd), and the psychotic Begbie (Robert Carlyle). Tommy and Begbie aren't junkies, but Renton's closest friends (Spud and Sick Boy) share his addiction. Despite wanting to clean up, Renton doesn't want to abandon his friends which ultimately lead him back to his addiction. Renton also happens to fall in love with a girl he meets at a club. After spending a night with Diane (Kelly Macdonald) he realizes the next morning she's only fourteen. Trainspotting is about the struggle Renton faces to quit his addiction while trying to maintain his relationship with his friends and not letting them affect him.

For some people Trainspotting has a little too much fun with drug addiction, but I would have to disagree. There are some very brutal and terrifying scenes about the effects of heroin and Boyle manages to balance both these elements. It may not be as dark as Requiem for a Dream, but it does feel more authentic and real in its treatment of drug abuse. It shows the pleasure that the drug gives at first, but the devastating consequences it has after the effect is over. These guys have to get involved in criminal activities in order to fund their addictions and neglect pretty much everyone around them. Their only ambition in life is to get stoned and they could care less about anything else. The film is also pretty sincere in its portrayal of how difficult it is to give up the habit. Through some stylized visuals and a great performance from McGregor we see how devastating and depressing it can be to get cleaned up. Ultimately drugs destroy their lives and the pleasure lasted for only a moment. Trainspotting is authentic and realistic in its portrayal while at the same time never ceasing to entertain the audience. A lot of credit has to be given to a relatively unknown then, Danny Boyle, and to the breakout performance from Ewan McGregor. Trainspotting boosted their careers and deservingly so. 

My Review: Anna Karenina (7/10)

¨Anna isn’t a criminal, but she broke the rules! ¨

After the success Joe Wright had last year with his thriller Hannah, he now returns to doing what made him famous: adapting well known romantic period pieces. His collaboration with Keira Knightley in Pride and Prejudice put him in the map. They teamed up again for Atonement with equal success, and now they got together for the third time for the adaptation of Leo Tolstoy´s famous novel. They say that the third time is the charm, but I found this to be their weakest collaboration together despite its four Oscar nominations (Cinematography, Costume Design, Original Score, and Production Design). Wright has had success in the past with these period pieces always receiving nominations for his work in the technical department. This film is a triumph visually with a great production and costume design representing 19^th century Imperialistic Russia. The performances are pretty much alright but no one really stands out here. The film is shot in an experimental way as the narrative seems to be taking place in a theater where actors come in and out of different sets through the stage. It strikes you odd at first, but later you get used to this approach which in a way works because the characters in this story are viewed through a lens in society in a similar way as we view actors performing plays on stage. It was an interesting and original way to make the film in my opinion, but I don’t know if it worked for everyone. The main issue I had with this film is that it was so focused on the beautiful exterior designs that the narrative and characters seemed to lack depth and humanity. Several issues were left out of Tolstoy´s novel, but it’s understandable considering Wright put more emphasis on the relationships than on socio-political ideologies.

The story is set in Imperialistic Russia during the late 19^th century focusing on aristocratic families. Anna Karenina (Keira Knightley), an aristocrat who is married to a senior government official named Alexei Karenin (Jude Law) who is twenty years older than her, decides to travel from St. Petersburg to Moscow to visit her brother, Stiva (Matthew MacFadyen) and convince his wife Dolly (Kelly Macdonald) to forgive him for being unfaithful to her in order to calm the turmoil that his affair stirred up in Moscow society. Stiva is a womanizer, but Anna convinces Dolly to forgive him and stay with him. Dolly´s beautiful sister, Princess Kitty (Alicia Vikander), invites Anna to a ball where she expects Vronsky (Aaron Johnson), a cavalry officer to propose to her. In the meantime a childhood friend of Stiva´s, Levin (Domhnall Gleeson) a passionate but shy landowner who lives in the country, has come to propose to Kitty as well. Kitty is in love with Vronsky so she politely refuses to marry Levin and he returns to the countryside. During the ball, Vronsky and Anna seem to instantly feel attracted towards each other and Vronsky completely ignores Kitty by choosing Anna as his dance partner instead of her. This is when Kitty realizes that Vronsky has never been in love with her, and Anna having such a strong attraction for Vronsky decides to return home to her husband and son before more damage is done. This is just the beginning for Anna´s moral troubles as, Vronsky takes the same train back to Petersburg and confesses his love to her. The two soon share a passionate affair, which Russian society will not forgive.

It must be hard to adapt what is considered to be one of the best novels of all time into a screenplay; and that difficult task was left to Tom Stoppard (Shakespeare in Love). I think that several elements from the novel didn’t translate very well, especially if the viewer wasn’t familiar with the novel. However the story is still so rich and powerful that the film works, although the characters don’t have enough depth as in the novel. Despite the difficulty in adapting the novel I feel the movie did succeed in some ways and makes this film worth the watch. Fans of period pieces will be delighted with the exquisite attention to the costume and production designs. They will also fall for this love affair, a story that has transcended time and space. Despite living in a very different society now, I feel that through paparazzi and gossip magazines we still kind of remain obsessed and judgmental towards Hollywood stars private lives in a similar way as ancient societies gossiped about aristocratic life. I do have to admit that as beautiful as the film might look, it does feel like it is missing a beat to it and will leave you a bit indifferent towards the end.

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My Review: Brave (6/10)

¨If you had a chance to change your fate, would you?¨

Pixar has raised the bar so high in animated films that it seems unfair to go into a film with such high expectations, but I did with this movie. Brave isn’t a bad film, but it really doesn’t hold up to Pixar’s greatest pictures like Up, Toy Story, Finding Nemo, or Ratatouille. It is visually amazing, but in an animated film I have come to expect a good story with interesting characters as well, along with a decent amount of comedy. Brave sometimes feels a bit serious, with not much really happening story wise. It is a gorgeous film to look at, but I ’m afraid the characters won’t stick with me in the same way that other animated characters have done so. I don’t know how much younger children will enjoy this movie, but it is a film that grown up kids and adults might enjoy. Brave is entertaining, and I have to admit that Pixar finally gave us a different kind of Disney princess this time. Merida loves archery and adventures; she isn’t your typical princess that dreams of finding love or is patiently waiting for her prince to come rescue you. This was probably my favorite aspect of the film; having Pixar introduce us to a different kind of heroine: a brave one. On the negative side I find it pretty tiring that they continue to insist on this parent against kid confrontation, where you have one of the parents trying to impose their value on the kid, and the parents always end up looking like the bad guys. There were a lot of similarities between this movie and How to Train Your Dragon (a movie I really loved), although that movie was more gorgeous to look at and had much more memorable characters. Brave is a good film, it just isn’t as great as the latest Pixar releases.

 Brave takes place in Scotland in a mythical time where four different clans all live in peace among each other. Fergus (Billy Connolly) is the leader of his clan, and he rules his people bravely alongside his wife, Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson). They have a daughter named Merida (Kelly Macdonald) who Elinor is preparing to be Queen one day. She must behave and act like a princess despite the fact that Merida prefers riding on her horse all day and having outdoor adventures with her bow. This difference between Merida and Elinor is what continually puts them against each other. When Merida finds out that her mother intends her to marry one of the firstborns of the other three clans she gets even more upset with her. Tradition stated that she must marry the firstborn of one of the clans in order to maintain the peace in the region so all three clans are coming to their land to fight for her love. One night Merida is so outraged that her mother never listens to her that she decides to run away from her home and comes across a witch who gives her a potion to change her mother. This way Merida believes she will finally be able to make her own decisions and her mother will accept her. What she doesn’t know is that her actions will have terrible consequences and that peace among the clans will be at stake.

The funniest characters in the film are the three younger brothers Merida has who are constantly being reckless. They provide the few comedic moments this animated film has. Otherwise I felt it played out more as a drama/adventure than a comedy. I really just got across watching this film after it received its Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature Film and was a little disappointed with it, but perhaps I’m just getting too old for this stuff. I still have to see the other four nominees before I choose my favorite, but Wreck it Ralph looks interesting. The plot really got weird during the second half of the film, but I still enjoyed the movie overall although I won’t be watching it again. I was a little disappointed with the story, but the visuals of the Scottish highlands were great. The film was directed by Mark Andrews after Brenda Chapman abandoned the project during the production stages. Andrews is mostly known for his short animated film: One Man Band which I loved. He didn’t have that great of a story to work with, but Brave is still a slightly entertaining film just don’t go into it with such high expectations.

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