T2 Trainspotting is out in cinemas on 27th January, which is a huge deal. It was a long time coming - 20 years, in fact - since the original Trainspotting defined British filmmaking in the '90s and made Edinburgh accents seem exotic for the first time ever. You might well have been a glint in the milkman's eye back in 1996, but even if you've not seen it you've surely heard it was one of the coolest films ever made, British or otherwise, and it looks like the sequel is set to be just as iconic and brilliant.
Loosely based on the novel Porno, which was a sequel to the original Trainspotting novel by Irvine Welsh, T2 Trainspotting gets the irreplaceable cast of the first movie back together: Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Robert Carlyle and Kelly Macdonald all reprise their roles as Renton, Spud, Sick Boy, Begbia and Diane, respectively. If that's not selling the movie for you, then we'll just tell you some other great reasons to go see it.
Irvine Welsh is fully onboard, so you know it's good
You know when they do remakes or sequels (or prequels for that matter *cough* Phantom Menace *cough*) the teams behind the original movies tend to slag them off or disown them completely? Often they're right to - usually some studio has got hold of the rights to something its got no business owning and butchered the legacy of a classic, and nobody's happy. Not with T2. Even occasionally terrifying hardnut Irvine Welsh has been onboard with this whole thing since the outset, regularly tweeting about it and raving about it in interviews. If an uncompromising lad like Irvine is onboard, you know it's gonna have the same gnarly vibe as the original.
All the characters are still complete and utter wrong 'uns
It'd be a pretty boring sequel if the characters involved had got themselves jobs at accountancy firms, worked on paying mortgages and settled into suburban life, wouldn't it? Let's go through them. Renton's clearly cut up about something and back in town to fix it, Spud's still on the smack, Sick Boy's gone full sinister criminal and only become sadder and that psycho, Begbie, has just done 20 years in prison and is completely livid about it (no one would be thrilled about it, tbf). Also, it looks like Diane's still up for a bit of sexy fun with Renton (side note: it must be weird getting with an ex 20 years after the last time). As in real life, the more things change, the more they stay the same.
The 'Choose Life' monologue has been updated
You were nobody in the '90s if you didn't have the 'Choose Life' monologue poster up on your bedroom wall (probably alongside some pictures of girls you ripped out of Loaded Magazine and an Oasis tour poster), and rightly so - the monologue was Renton's rant against the rat-race, a rant against being normal and boring and a rant against getting old. While the original monologue included references to leisurewear, DIY, mind-numbing game shows and "a fucking big television", the new version has been updated to include social media, slut-shaming and zero hour contracts, among other things. In the '90s, the Choose Life speech viewed as a call-to-arms by young people, in 2017, this updated version could be a call-to-arms for everyone bored of the same old, same old. It'll give you goosebumps.
Danny Boyle's not a bad director, to be fair
In 1996, Danny Boyle was fairly new to the directing game. He'd done a load of TV shows, but Trainspotting was only his second movie (his first was Shallow Grave, though, which is also great). Fast forward 20 years and he's notched up a few absolute bangers in the meantime. The Beach - great movie, 28 Days Later - great movie, Steve Jobs - great movie, the London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony - great ceremony, Slumdog Millionaire - great movie that won eight (eight!) Oscars. Can we all agree that Danny Boyle is not just a safe pair of hands or a known quantity but a total movie hero and definitely on the way to national treasure status?
The soundtrack is going to be completely sick
One of the greatest things about the first Trainspotting was the soundtrack - a veritable Who's Who of the super-cool at the time, with some tastefully chosen classics thrown in - and the soundtrack looks set to be just as cool: Young Fathers, The Rubberbandits and Fat White Family rub shoulders with legends like Frankie Goes To Hollywood, The Clash and Queen, and Underworld offer up a remix of Born Slippy, the song with the greatest refrain of all time that the first movie made famous.
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That's pretty much all we know about T2 Trainspotting to-date and we'll have to wait until January 27th to find out exactly what happens to Renton and the lads. But, for now, it's probably fair to say that, along with the above, there will be plenty of snorting, boozing, fighting and shagging. Lovely.
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