T2 Trainspotting

The original Trainspotting may have been the absolute last movie you would have expected--or even desired--to see get a sequel. So on the surface, this film's existence makes no sense. But director Danny Boyle and company are smarter than that, and that superficial judgement disappears almost immediately once this new venture gets going. Indeed, the viewer soon realizes that he's watching not only a legitimate story in its own right, but one that serves as a logical continuation and conclusion to the first movie's tale. In fact, the original is all over this sequel, with inter-cut scenes from twenty years ago informing the story as it unfolds today. In less skilled hands, that might have been distracting, if not a painfully obvious safety net--but here it works, in a big way, and the technique helps make this piece an interesting meditation on the passage of time, on who and what we are, and if there is such a thing as destiny. That's enough of a portfolio to make this flick worth the ride.

Plunkett & Macleane

Never let it be said I have no sticktoitiveness. This film languished in my "to be seen" database for at least a decade before I finally stumbled across it on one of the cable channels. Fortunately, it's a period piece, so falling out of date was impossible. And the story--a disaffected pair of young men in 1700's England turn to (literal) highway robbery to get a leg up in the world--has continual appeal, made more so by the jaunty production and good performances seen here. The ending may be a little obvious, but it's always a kick to see the rich get robbed by the poor, so it all balances out. Give it a look when you're in the mood for a bawdy tale of amoral days of yore.