This two disc set has a wealth of extra features (it appears that they've ported them over from the recent UK release), most of which are on the second disc, but are spread out accordingly:

Disc 1

First up is an interesting commentary track from director Danny Boyle, star Ewan McGregor, producer Andrew McDonald, and screenwriter John Hodge. McGregor starts the commentary off explaining that it has been pieced together from various interviews conducted with the participants back in 1996. It's edited together quite nicely however, and there are a lot of interesting tidbits contained within. Boyle and McGregor both have some nice anecdotes about the films infamous toilet diving scene, and hearing Hodge discuss alcoholism versus heroin addiction lends a unique perspective to the proceedings. Hodge also discusses some of the difficulties in adapting the book for the big screen and McDonald is on hand to offer his stories about bringing the whole thing together and some of the difficulties he faced in doing that.

The first disc is also where the nine deleted scenes are housed, each scene available with optional commentary, and able to be played separately or in a montage. These deleted scenes are presented in non-anamorphic widescreen.

Deleted Scene #24 - A scene involving Renton reading a movie guide that was cut for pacing reasons.

Deleted Scene #31 - Spuds interview in a more complete form, edited because Boyle didn't really think anyone would get it (a shame too, as it is a great scene!).

Deleted Scene #32 - Renton's interview, cut because according to Boyle it went on too long and was actually too close to the narrative of the book..

Deleted Scene #73 & 110 - Renton, Spud and Sick Boy are caught red handed shoplifting in a record store by Diane, cut because the director felt that the scene was just poorly done.

Deleted Scene #142 - A moment between Renton and Swanney in the hospital after Swanney has lost his leg, cut because it was too similar to another scene with Tommy.

Deleted Scene #143 - Renton and Sick Boy are talking in a park, the scene shows a more cynical Sick Boy, changed by some of the darker events that occur in the film. This scene was lopped out because it takes the focus away from Renton's story.

Deleted Scene #188 - Renton is pulled away from a soccer game when Diane tells him she's dumping him for another guy who is in better shape. Boyle felt this was a good scene but that it needed to be cut for pacing reasons.

Deleted Scene #191 - Begbie, Sick Boy, Renton and Spud are talking at the bus station, this scene was cut once again to bring the focus of the film back to Renton.

Disc 2

The first feature on the second disc is the Retrospective. This is broken up into four parts, the first two of which are broken up into Then and Now portions. The Retrospective feature is broken up as follows:

1 – The Look Of The Film: Then (4:00) is a quick chat with Kane Quinn, who talks about the rich layer of visual references that they were able to work into the film. Now (3:00) is a chat with Danny Boyle who gives his thoughts on how the visuals became such an important part of this film, even more so than in most movies, and how it brought the book to life.

2 – The Sound Of The Film: Then (7:41) features footage of Shepperto Studios where most of the postproduction sound work was done on new equipment being used for the first time. Boyle and McDonald are featured. Now (4:50) is interview footage from February of 2003 with McDonald who discusses how Boyle's taste in music and musical influences came to play such an important part in the success of the film.

3 – Interviews: Irvin Welsh (4:36) speaks about the genesis of the story and what he was going for when he wrote the novel, as well as his feelings about the final version of the film as it appeared on screen. John Hodge (7:58) talks at length about his screenwriting process and why some of the changes that were made had to be instituted to make the novel work as a movie. Danny Boyle (14:32) speaks about his feelings on the book and how it compares to the film, as well as his overall feelings about working with the team he worked with and how the film ended up turning out. And finally, Andrew McDonald (10:32) gives his thoughts on why he decided to go ahead and produce such a difficult adaptation as Trainspotting and how it all came to pass.

4 – Behind The Needle (6:32) is a feature that lets us take a look at Renton's injection scene, using a prosthetic, from three very different angles. There is also a section entitled Calton Athletic Boys (0:32) wherein Ewan McGregor talks about some experiences he had with some genuine heroin addicts. This clip is taken from a longer clip that can be seen in its entirety in the Making Of Trainspotting featurette, also on this DVD.

Aside from the Retrospective segment, there's also a Cannes section where celebrities are interviewed about their take on the film after it screened at the Cannes Film Festival in 1996. Martin Landau (0:53) seems to have enjoyed it and compares Danny Boyle to Tarantino, Noel Gallagher of Oasis (2:11) talks about how it reflected drug use in the Manchester scene happening at the time. Damon Alburn of Blur (1:03) appears to have just woken up but had fun watching the movie. Finally, Ewan McGregor (0:46) discusses how he was pleased with the positive response that the film got from the audience. A Cannes Snapshot (1:57) winds this segment up, featuring snippets of comments, footage from the party, and other material from the festival where the film premiered.

Next up is the Trailers section where you can find the Teaser (1:10) and the Original Theatrical Trailer (2:01).

The Making Of Trainspotting (9:32) is a behind the scenes look at the creation of the film featuring footage with Andrew McDonald who discusses adapting the book, as well as with Ewan McGregor, Danny Boyle and Irvine Welsh, who makes some interesting comments about his work. It's a rather generic making of segment, but there is some material here that isn't covered in the other supplements which makes it worth checking out.

Finally, wrapping up the extra features, there are Biographies in text format on the DVD for Danny Boyle, Andrew McDonald, John Hodge, Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Johnny Lee Miller, Kevin McKidd, Robert Carlyle and Kelly MacDonald, as well as a Gallery comprised of some behind the scenes Polaroid shots set to music (5:05).

Miramax has done a bang up job on this current release, and Trainspotting – The Definitive Edition is a rock solid release with great audio and video and a wealth of interesting extra features. Highly recommended.

Ian lives in NYC with his wife where he writes for DVD Talk, runs Rock! Shock! Pop!. He likes NYC a lot, even if it is expensive and loud.