The Top 7 Ewan McGregor Films That You May Have Missed
Ewan McGregor standing in front of a dark Academy Awards backdrop
Image Source: The Courier Mail News
Looking back this summer at Trainspotting’s thirtieth anniversary, it is hard to believe that so much time has gone by (especially for those of us who still think it’s the 90’s). Trainspotting was a launching pad for its young stars, and I believe the most prolific of them is Ewan McGregor.
Since the film’s release in 1996, Ewan McGregor’s career has truly skyrocketed, with 103 acting credits listed on IMBd, and no signs of slowing down! Here, I will look at some of his most memorable work that may not have had as much attention as Trainspotting or his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars franchise.
RELATED:
7: Shallow Grave (1994)
Ewan McGregor with piles of money in Shallow Grave
Image Source: Common Sense Media
This is the first feature film Ewan McGregor starred in and started his partnership with director Danny Boyle. It was a commercial success and mostly got good reviews from critics. It stars McGregor, Christopher Eccleston, and Kerry Fox as roommates in Edinburgh who need a fourth roommate.
They end up with Hugo, who is found dead the next day with a lot of money in a suitcase. The three original roommates take a rather gruesome turn while trying to decide what to do with the body, the money, and, eventually, their relationship with each other. For a first-time movie actor, Ewan definitely gave a wonderful performance, which segues into his performance in Trainspotting, in my opinion.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yf6pGBNpkV0
6: The Pillow Book (1996)
Ewan McGregor and Vivian Wu in the bath
Image Source: IMBd
Amazingly enough, the same year that Trainspotting came out, McGregor also starred in The Pillow Book. I have memories of watching this in my Contemporary British Film class when I was a senior in college. The reason why I don’t think so many others in the United States saw this movie is due to its bypassing the ratings system, though it was released in the States in 1997. Directed by Peter Greenaway, this movie is rich in the way it uses each frame as its own powerful picture.
Vivian Wu stars as Nagiko, a young Japanese woman who from a young age is fascinated by calligraphy. Her father is a calligrapher and writer whose books are published by a man who essentially blackmails him, and forces Nagiko to marry his apprentice, who happens to be his nephew. Nagiko meets McGregor’s character after she runs away to Hong Kong escaping her loveless marriage. McGregor plays Jerome, a British translator who knows many languages. He meets her need to mix calligraphy with intimacy, but Jerome also becomes involved with the Publisher from her childhood. This is definitely an original, out-of-the-box film, but not for the queasy.
5: Velvet Goldmine (1998)
Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Ewan McGregor in Velvet Goldmine
Image Source: Tribeca Films
The star of this Todd Haynes’s film is Christian Bale, who plays Arthur, a journalist who is sent on an assignment to find out what happened to fictional Seventies glam-rocker Brian Slade, played by Jonathan Rhys-Meyers. Ewan McGregor plays Curt Wild, the up-and-coming rock star with whom Slade is having an open affair.
Personally, I like the way the music is mixed with the visuals throughout the movie, giving a retro-MTV video look to the film. It is a mystery, not only of Arthur trying to figure out where Brian Slade is, but also of him piecing together the memories he has of this era while he was growing up with the reality that he is working with now. I’m always a sucker for nostalgia.
4: Moulin Rouge! (2001)
Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman surrounded by patrons of the Moulin Rouge
Image Source: The Telegraph
This splashy, colorful musical directed by Baz Luhrmann paired Ewan with Nicole Kidman. Here, McGregor plays Christian, a poet who moves to Paris to be part of the artsy scene there. He hangs out at the Moulin Rouge, the legendary night club. There, Christian meets Satine, Nicole Kidman’s character. She is a dancer at the club, and the object of the Duke’s (Richard Roxburgh) attention.
This leads to a heated love triangle. But, this taking place in the poor demographics of the Paris of the 1890’s, of course, there are other factors in play that affect the young lovers’ lives. This movie really shows Ewan’s singing talent, though he also sang in Velvet Goldmine. Ewan also sings in Emma, Miss Potter, Beauty and the Beast, and the 2005 stage production of Guys & Dolls, though I think that Moulin Rouge! truly shows his musical aptitude.
3: Brassed Off (1996)
Ewan McGregor, Tara Fitzgerald wearing uniforms and are among band members
Image Source: IMBd
I am seriously wondering if Ewan slept at all from 1994-1996 considering that this is the second movie from 1996 on this list, and that does not include Trainspotting! At any rate, I find this movie to have aged well for our times. Brassed Off, written and directed by Mark Herman, follows a group of coal miners who are facing unemployment if their mine gets shut down and their brass band. This is a fictional account of what was happening in England in the 1980s when coal mines were becoming privatized and shut down, causing many men to lose their livelihoods.
I remember when Trump started his first term as President he promised that coal mines in the United States would stay open and called the product, “clean, beautiful coal”. While most contemporary people would argue that coal mining is bad for the environment and causes horrible health problems for the miners, mining provided not just an income, but a way of life for many communities in the United States and in England. The effects of the mines closing is the point of Brassed Off, but it’s done in a gentle, light-hearted way by focusing on how the community comes together with their brass band. Gloria, played by Tara Fitzgerald, who works with the company that is looking to shut down the mine reignites her childhood romance with Andy, played by Ewan McGregor. Discord reigns once Gloria’s role is found out by the other miners; the band decides to disband after the members vote to close the mine so they can collect redundancy money. At the end, even though the mine closes, the band makes it to the National competition. In this age of AI and political uncertainty, whose to say which one of us may be determined to be redundant?
2: The Men who Stare at Goats (2009)
Movie poster for “The Men who Stare at Goats”
Image Source: Netflix
They say truth is stranger than fiction, which could explain how this film is actually based on real people and events. The Men who Stare at Goats, directed by Grant Heslov, is based on the book by the same name, written by Jon Ronson. It documents how the United States Army researched psychic power in order to harness it as a weapon with the usual “light side versus dark side”. It even mentions Jedis! The movie stars George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Jeff Bridges, and Kevin Spacey.
McGregor plays a reporter, Bob, from Michigan (he works for an Ann Arbor newspaper) whose wife leaves him. In a desperate plea to win her back, Bob volunteers to go to the Middle East to report on the Iraq War. While he is there, he meets a retired U.S. Army Special Forces operator who introduces Bob to the “New Earth Army”, they get kidnapped, stare at the aforementioned goats, and figure out how to use LSD in their predicament. And every time I hear Boston’s “More than a Feeling”, I immediately get transported back to watching this. Plus, this is certified through the Humane Society that no animals, including the goats, were harmed during filming.
1: Big Fish (2003)
A young Edward and Sandra sitting in a field of yellow flowers.
Image Source: Frame Related
Tim Burton directed a beautiful movie that pays homage to the joys of storytelling. With an all-star cast of Albert Finney, Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange, Helena Bonham Carter, Robert Guillaume, Steve Buscemi, Danny DeVito, and a very young Miley Cyrus, among others, Big Fish is the story of a dying salesman (Finney) and his son (Crudup) who is expecting his first child with his wife. The son, Will, has always felt a disconnect from his father Edward due to the way his dad has told stories about his life, none of which Will believes.
Drawn back home due to a sense of duty, especially towards his mother Sandra (Lange), Will starts to piece together his dad’s life. The story is told mostly in flashbacks with Ewan McGregor playing the younger Edward. It involves giants, witches, conjoined twins, circuses, mystical towns, and, of course, a big fish. While I am known in my family for shedding tears at quite a few movies, I would double-dog dare anyone to walk away from this one with a dry eye.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPOpKpdn3SE
CultureSlate: Made by humans, for humans.
Please consider supporting our AI-free content via our Patreon page.
READ NEXT:
Latest News
Featured
• All sizes are adult unisex
• Printed art on the front
• 100% cotton
• Pre-shrunk fabric
• Shoulder-to-shoulder taping
• Culture Slate Exclusive Design
See more products here