Trainspotting

• The film is set in Edinburgh, Scotland.
• Trainspotting was released on September 23rd, 1996
• In the opening scene there is a ground level shot when Renton jumps over the camera and this suggests that he is the main character because the movie starts in media res with him. It has an exhilarating start that reflects the pace of the movie
• In the opening scene Renton takes his first on-screen hit and the camera rotates and tracks him as he falls to the floor. The shot circulates around Renton and then goes out into the hallway where the audience sees baby dawn crawling on the floor. This introduces the idea of youth in this very hostile environment
• In the opening scene Renton gets hot with a ball and he passes out and this scene match cuts to him passing out from drugs. This could represent the cycle of drugs and how there is no escape as Renton is either high or depressed. it also brings the audience down to his level
• The opening scene is paired with Iggy Pop's song Lust for life and this trivalises drugs as the song discusses their effect
• In the opening scene the audience is introduced to the grubby flat and this could be a reflection of Renton's nihilistic outlook on life. it also foreshadows an unsettling ending for the baby as her innocence seems out of place in this neglectful environment.
• At the beginning of the worst toilet in Scotland scene there is a POV shot of people in the shop looking at him. This shows how he is an outsider and they have reduced him to nothing but a drug addict
• When Renton is on the worst toilet in Scotland he is depicted to be entering the toilet through a full side angle. This unusual shot highlights the gravity of the situation and how far his addiction will make him go
• When Renton is swimming in the toilet there is surreal music partnered with his voiceover. Together they show the effects of heroin and how unreliable he is as a narrator because if he is that high then how does he remember all these details. Magic realism
• When the group goes on a hike in the countryside there is an extreme long shot of Tommy paired with a CU of the 3 boys. this helps to show how isolated Tommy is as he is trying to make the most out of a bad situation but the others are not willing to adapt. It shows how Tommy is beginning to be influenced into drugs as all of his friends are deciding to get back on them
• When they decide to go on a hike in the countryside Renton gives a speech about how awful Scotland is. It shows how he feels like an outsider to society and he thinks the "scottish are the lowest of the low". This scene gives us an insight into why renton chooses to chase drugs as he thinks there is nowhere better for him to go to.
• When Renton overdoses there is paralytic music of the song "Perfect Day" which ironically shows how Renton is at one of his lowest points.
• When Renton overdoses there is POV shot that the shows that the carpet has almost swallowed him . it highlights how he is at is lowest and perhaps he has sunk down to his literal death bed. This scene helps to deglamourise drugs
• When Renton enters his cold turkey state there is a dolly zoom of the walls elongating. this adds to the immersion and how disorentated he is. Rentons desire to escape relaity is illuminated through the dolly zoom but his drugs are keeping him tethered back to reality
• When Renton is in Cold turkey there is a POV shot of the baby falling on him, and this is the climax of his hallucinations. All of Mark's lowest points are coming back to haunt him, his vulnerable moments are making the viewer question his morales and character
• When renton is in Cold turkey there is a moment when Spud is depicted to be wearing shackles and this perhaps alludes to how he is now in prison and renton can't help him. Guilt is plaguing him
• Thatcherism


  Policies of Margaret Thatcher, emphasizing free market, privatization, and limited government intervention