“How does the aesthetic quality of "Trainspotting" depict youth and drug addiction?” Your answer must refer to 2 scenes.(A grade)

In the first the mid-shot of the door shows the above light flickering off and on this foreshadows that the nature of the heroin addiction is constantly making Renton go back, although at this point we have hope for him it shows that it is going to be a constant struggle between dark and light. In addition to this the low-key lighting of the toilet door reinforces the aesthetic of the scene because it’s one of lowest moments of Renton’s addiction. The subtitle that appears on the screen creates an extra layer of grotesque comedy, in this frame the mise en scene of the strained door and toilet sign represent how Renton’s life’s been stained by the horrors of addiction. On top of this the toilet sign is also slanted suggesting that heroin creates a crooked life. Contextually at the time Scotland was very divided from the rest of the UK because of Margret Thatcher’s early introduction of the poll tax in Scotland, which could explain why it is the worst toilet in Scotland rather than the UK. The shot also transitions using the light flicker which again reinforces his unstable relationship with drugs. The long shot of Renton in the toilet as he is realizing how bad it is shows how alone he is in this situation but also establishes the scene for the audience and begins to introduce the theme of social realism because of how filthy it is. As Renton runs into the toilet cubicle there is a closeup of his shoes, which were once white converse. This shot brings about aspects of his character and shows how little he cares about anything other than drugs, so he isn’t very well kept and it also represents the brown tinge heroin has left on his life. The low angle shot that follows of Renton looking into the toilet shows that he has dominance, this could be because of the fact that he has the power over whether to continue using drugs and end up with his life in the toilet or to quit and make something of himself, this is emphasised by his youth also as he does have time to make a change. Following from this the mise-en-scene of Renton’s desperate facial expression in the shot after as his bowel movement continues foreshadows that no matter how low life gets, Renton will always be looking for one last hit.

In the next frame as Renton sits down on the toilet, the way the camera is positioned in an eye line shot makes him look as though he’s in the foetal position. This reminds me of how young Renton is and perhaps creates sympathy for him. This also shows how young many drug users are when they start using and relying on them which also gives us a sense of compassion for young people who have been sucked into the world of drugs. A closeup of Renton’s face then shows his disappointment of losing the pills in the toilet. The emphasis on his distraught face shows that drugs for him are like life and death. The low angle shot from the toilet where Renton’s face is directly over the camera could suggest that this is Renton’s peak of dominance as it’s his choice how low he sinks. Also the fact that Renton’s face is upside down in the camera shows that his life has been turned upside down by drug use. The next point of view shot of Renton’s hands in the toilet makes me feel nauseated, this could be a euphemism to how drugs can make you feel and really gets into the gritty realism of addiction. Within this short sequence as Renton reaches into the toilet there are two shots of his facial expression. He is just as repulsed as I felt which humanises him and makes me feel sympathy for him. Contrasting to this however Renton seems to be going to any length to get the drugs back, he didn’t necessarily have to put his hands in the toilet, this brings in the huge theme of choice within drug addiction and how far drug users are in control of their lives. As Renton begins to climb into the toilet, some non-diegetic music can be heard. The music is classical and sounds as though it would be played in a grand ballroom. This really contrasts with the current scene which emphasises how bad it really is. This also links back to the life Renton could have had, the life that heroin has taken away from him.

When Renton swims into the toilet we begin to see elements of hyperrealism. Danny Boyle is trying to represent something that happens figuratively, Renton’s life going “down the toilet”, in a literal way. This affected me because it was an artistic way of presenting realism, which really intensified the social issues visited in trainspotting. This attracts the focus of the audience and makes them really think about the extent of drug use. When Renton first gets into the water we see him swimming away from the light above which leads out of the toilet which brings about the theme of light and dark, Renton has choice of light or dark and he chooses to swim further which could show that Renton is irresponsible and lets himself sink lower for drugs. As we see Renton swimming towards the bottom of the toilet he goes past a naval mine, which explode if you touch them. This represents the fragility of Renton’s current situation and mirrors the fact that if he touches heroin his life would figuratively explode all over again. As Renton swims we catch sight of the pills which are bigger and fluorescent white which makes them stand out a lot against the murky water. The shows how he views drugs as the light at the end of the tunnel and also that they are such a big part of his life now. When Renton climbs out of the toilet the change from the more serene water to the brown, harsh, stained aesthetic of “the Worst Toilet in Scotland”, and the still fluorescent white of the pills stands out against the background and shows the attraction of drugs. The fact that Renton is in a state of victory when half of his body is inside a toilet shows that for heroin addicts “victory” is barely a concept because once you take heroin it changes your life, for the worse, forever.

In the scene where Renton overdoses the first shot is a point of view shot from Renton, and it looks as though he has sunken into a grave, this gives the connotations that heroin is fatal and the red sides of the “grave” that are made up of the carpet which has been used throughout shows the danger Renton is in. I think this scene for me raised awareness of how early young people end up dying because of involvement in drugs early on, and how terrifying it is that lives are cut so short because of something so easy to get sucked into. Also, I notice the music in the background is a song with the lyrics “it’s such a perfect day, I’m glad I spent it with you”. This is quite ironic because it isn’t a perfect day if you’ve overdosed on drugs, in addition it is clear that the “you” is heroin. This makes the drug seem as though it is a companion. Also, the song has sad chords but happy lyrics which could show the highs and lows of heroin and also that the happiness is short lived and the sinister aspect is always underlying everything just like chords. The shot reverse shot of mother superior and Renton shows mother superior looking into his “grave” this shows that mother superior, who has been dealing drugs to many naïve young people has taken advantage of Renton’s addiction and his willingness to give money. Even though mother superior played a huge part in Renton’s addiction he is the one that suffers for it, because the dealer cares about money, not people. The next wide shot of the ambulance steaming past and the diegetic sirens establishes the urgency of Renton’s situation however this is juxtaposed by the next shot of him being dragged carelessly down the stairs by mother superior. This emphasises the lack of care and ruthlessness of mother superior as a character and is also one of the lowest moments for Renton. The next point of view shot shows Renton looking up from his “grave” and staring straight into the face of the source of the substance that “killed” him this creates a sense of loneliness and represents the emotional side of substance abuse, and that for many young people the last thing they see is not their family or friends but the drug that has completely ruined their lives.

The next shot of the ambulance going straight past Renton shows how little time emergency services have for drug users and intensifies Renton’s loneliness, here we can link back to how young Renton is and how young people need support and love in order to stay on track, but Renton sacrificed this for something he was naïve to. The next shot shows the two characters, mother superior and Renton, on different levels of focus. Mother superior is in focus which shows his selfishness and greed for money and Renton is out of focus because all he is to mother superior is a customer. It also gives a sense of unfamiliarity between the two characters, all they had in common was the drugs and now they feel separated from each other. The fact that mother superior almost throws Renton in the taxi also shows what a careless character he is and says a lot about the relationship they have which is false and based on the denial that drugs cause nothing but harm.

The two scenes I have analysed for me are two of Renton’s lowest moments. Both convey his loneliness and downfall because of drugs. The toilet scene is earlier on in the film and it ends in a triumph, even if it is trivial, however as the film moves on Renton’s low moments stop ending in any triumph like the overdose scene, which represents the downward trajectory of his life and the very gradual spiral he has entered through substance abuse. As well as this it showed me that nobody is invincible and the effects of drugs are always unpredictable and when positive, always short lived.