1. Trainspotting Mark Renton
It was never going to be anything else. After the success of his first collaboration with Oscar winning director Danny Boyle in Shallow Grave, the pair moved on to the Irvine Welsh novel Trainspotting. The book depicts the gritty, realistic abyss that drug addiction can send a person and set against the backdrop of a bleak, grey Edinburgh in the the 1980s. The novel created controversy but garnered critical acclaim for highlighting the themes set throughout the narrative. Naturally, after the success of the novel, the inevitable film adaptation came in 1996 and with a cast that includes Johnny Lee Miller and Robert Carlisle, Ewan McGregor stood out as the films protagonist Renton. Possessing the required charm and wit to carry that grim narrative along, the performance from McGregor almost seemed effortless and exuded everything that was cool about Britain in the mid 90s. Having a great soundtrack and comedic wit, Trainspotting was critically and commercially successful and has gone onto to appear on many best ever lists, while at the same time new fans are being introduced to the films unique feel. It still today is seen as McGreogr zenith but with the speculated Trainspotting 2 apparently on its way, it will be intriguing to see if McGregor produces a similarly stunning performance.
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