Irvine Welsh Movies
A bored housewife falls for a drug smuggling addict who attempts to turn his life around following one particularly harrowing experience. Based on the book by Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh, Ecstacy tells the story of Heather (Kristin Kreuk), a middle class woman who seeks genuine excitement after creaking free from her passionless marriage. When Heather meets Lloyd (Adam Sinclair), her life begins to change in ways she never thought possible. As the two lovers begin to lose themselves in a blurry haze of substance-enhanced passion, however, Heather begins to wonder if Lloyd would still love her if he were clean and sober. The answer to that question comes when Lloyd experiences a close brush with death during a deal gone awry, and quickly decides to abandon his life of crime in favor of building a brighter future with Heather. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
This adaptation of three stories from Irvine Welsh's short-story collection of the same name reunites Annie Louise Ross, Kevin McKidd, and Ewen Bremner from the author's previous cinematic success, Trainspotting, which was also set in the author's native North Edinburgh. In the Kafka-esque "The Granton Star Cause," a lazy amateur footballer (Stephen McCole) has a very, very bad day that culminates in God (Maurice Roeves) turning him into an insect. In "A Soft Touch," a young husband and father (McKidd) finds his life disrupted when a psychotic neighbor (Gary McCormack) takes up with his wife (Michelle Gomez) and invades his wretched tenement. And in "The Acid House," a druggie low-life (Bremner) experiences a Freaky Friday-style body switch with the infant son of a pair of self-involved yuppies. After "The Granton Star Cause" was screened separately at the Edinburgh Film Festival, the completed film was shown at Cannes in 1998. The title is a play on the term "acid house," a form of sinister dance music that emerged in Chicago in the mid-'80s and helped fuel the formative years of England's rave culture. Former Doctor Who actor Maurice Roeves, who plays God in "The Granton Star Cause," also has cameos in the other two segments. Jemma Redgrave, niece of Lynn and Vanessa Redgrave and cousin of Natasha and Joely Richardon, appears in the title segment and lends her Bjork-haired visage to the film's poster. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- Starring:
- Stephen McCole, Maurice Roeves, (more)
Mark Renton (Ewan McGregor), a young man with few prospects and fewer ambitions, lives in economically depressed Edinburgh. Like most of his friends, Renton is a heroin addict who loves the drug's blissful nothingness; financing his habit also provides excitement and challenges that his life otherwise lacks. Renton's two best friends are also junkies: Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller), a snappy dresser obsessed with James Bond, and Spud (Ewan Bremner), a guileless nerd who suggests Pee Wee Herman's debauched cousin. Renton and his pals also hang out with Begbie (Robert Carlyle), a borderline psychotic who loathes junkies even though he drinks like a fish. After one too many brushes with the law, Renton kicks heroin and moves to London, where he finds a job, a flat, and something close to peace of mind. However, Sick Boy, Begbie, and Spud all arrive at his doorstep on the trail of a big score, leading Renton back into drugs and crime. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, (more)
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