i gave the movie a 6 out of ten because i believe the movie did a impressive job at depicting the use of drugs and the issues that heroin causes. I also thought that the cinematography added to the intense scenes, For example when Renton was overdosing, the close up of the needle made the scene feel much more grave and disturbing. It also showed how just one needle can ruin someone’s life. The cinematography in the swimming scene made the scene feel unreal , especially when he started to swim towards the camera with his hand reached out. However I didn’t like how vulgar the film was and some scenes were difficult to watch.
My most memorable scene is when Renton was having withdrawals and hallucination in his room. This was because the birds-eye-view added a different perspective from the hallucinations and it also let us see the fear in the main characters eyes when the different people and the baby were approaching him
I thought that the film Trainspotting was about people who have to live everyday life with an addiction. The film follows the life Mark Renton, when he sees not only himself also his friends be wrapped around the idea of drugs and thinking that the only way to be happy was by consuming them. The film is seen as black comedy which is the contrast of humour and tragic scenes.
The scene that stuck with me most was most likely the bar brawl. This was when a man bumped into Franco and spilt his drink and with Franco being a light fuse he blew and beat some guys up. You see Sick boy and Spud going to defend him but Renton just sits there trying not to get involved. That was so important to the movie as you can see Renton doesn’t want to be part of this type of life ever again.
I think that Trainspotting was a great movie. I really enjoyed the aesthetics of it, the lighting was a standout aspect to me. I think the movie felt very real, and the scenes including the drug usage are very tense. I enjoyed the grungy feel of the lighting in most of the scenes.
Stand out scene:
I feel that this scene was very powerful in its representation of Renton’s overdose. The way that most of the camera is covered by the carpet when looking from Renton’s point of view really disorientates the viewer, which adds to the effect of this scene. The camera cutting from how Renton is perceiving the situation to how others around him are is a very unique way of showing his move to the hospital. The use of the carpet falling down into the floor is a great use of foreshadowing to the death of Tommy and the later shot that parallels this, the lowering of his coffin. By doing this, immediately the viewer knows that Renton has overdosed, and this scene becomes a lot more tense. The tense feeling of the scene is starkly contrasted with the music playing in the background.
Cinematography- I feel that this scene is very effective at showing Renton’s thought process in this scene. the way that the camera lingers on this close up shot of the needle, showing how Renton waits for the blood to leak into the syringe. The way I have interpreted this is him having slight hesitation, knowing that doing this could send him to prison, as he said that he would stop using and go to rehab on court order. The camera being this close to the needle also helps in un-nerving the audience, as seeing it be injected so close up may unsettle a large amount of viewers.
Mise En Scene- I feel the space in this frame is able to show how the three in this frame feel insignificant to their situation. by having the characters against the vast hills behind them, it creates a contrast to the rising tensions between tommy and the others.
Editing – The editing for the whole bedroom scene helps to create a tense atmosphere, the sharp cuts from each shot of Renton’s hallucinations to the next help to get the viewer on edge. It disorientates the viewer by cutting from things that are inside Renton’s mind (Spud sat on his cupboard, the baby) and things that are real (himself and the tv).
Sound- during Renton’s overdose scene, sound is used in an effective way by the use of an already existing song. Perfect Day by Lou Reed is played in the background of this scene underneath other sounds, such as ambulances, cars and the doctors shouting at him. this is a very effective way to show the audience how disconnected Renton is in this moment, as the music stops when he is given the adrenalin shot in his arm.
film which is also called a movie, or moving motion of pictures, is a work of visual art that stimulates experience and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings or atmosphere through the use of moving images. An opinion on a film will change over a wide range of people; this could depend on the genre, the actors and actresses. So the big question is what makes a film ” good”. Normally a film is good by someone’s opinion however these opinions are based on 2 elements. These are micro and macro elements. A micro element is based on editing, mise en scene, sound, and cinematography. A macro element is based on genre, messages and values, representation, narrative, style, authorship and them. A film doesn’t have to be perfect for it to be good, the film has to connote these elements and entertain people while doing that. While making sure lighting and sound is good while filming and making sure the editing is good the most important element is the messages the film conveys. The message the film delivers to the viewers will create a sense in the mind to only think or feel that message making the film feel intelligent, enigmatic and a good watch as it makes viewers see the film through a different light. This may be important but in order to create a film that can otherwise communicate meanings, it it’s important that the micro and macro elements are up to a good standard. For example making sure the genre links throughout the film is the same and the film showcases that specific genre eg romantic, horror, action. Making sure the sound is right, for example sad music in a sad scene or silence in a scary scene. Making sure the representation and the aspects of society eg age, gender and ethnicity are represented to the audiences in a correct and friendly manner. These elements contribute massively to a film and making sure it is contributed correctly will make a film good. Evidently, The human mind assumes because one person likes something we all like that something (reciprocal liking )however we all have our own opinions and not be afraid to like something different. Not everyone likes the same good film but we all know why we like a good film So in conclusion, although the micro and macro elements are important in reasoning why a film is good, it is also very important to understand that our personal opinions and judgements are what makes a film good. The opinions come from the micro and macro elements.
I give a rating of 8/10. For me throughout the whole movie, it felt like you where watching a true story of the group of people. This feeling was created by the actors, who’s acting was very talented and quite emotional to watch. The acting created the feeling of a realism of social issues in life.
The most memorable scene for me was when Renton is in his locked bedroom and is having withdrawal symptoms. This is the most memorable scene for me because I though the acting from Ewan McGregor made the scene very memorable and unforgettable. I also though the sound that was used was amazing because as the music got quicker and louder the more Renton got more fidgety and angrier.
Trainspotting – Micro elements
Sound – my favourite seen that used sound amazingly was when he was having withdrawal symptoms in his bedroom. I liked the way they used sound because as Renton was getting more and more fidgety and anxious and increasing with his symptoms the music/ Sound get faster and slightly louder over the time of this scene
Editing – In this scene the use of adding a title of the names of each character help the audience to understand each character individually and instead of guessing which character is who you already know who they are from the use of editing. This creates a sense of being knowledgeable as you don’t have to go finding in the film who is who.
Mise En Scene – In this scene I thought the mise en scene used showcased the scene perfect. There is a group of old people playing bingo and Renton is just sat in the middle of the gathering feeling uncomfortable and wanting to get out of the situation he is in. In this scene it creates a sense of the two different life’s that Renton and his parent have; Renton’s life – unsettling and upsetting, Parent’s life – fun and a social life.
Cinematography – in this seen, the camera is a birds eye view of Renton laying on the floor. This creates a sense that Renton is feeling week and appears to be needing help, as the audience we are looking over him creating a sense that we are watching him get defeated by drugs. This scene get quite disturbing and upsetting when there is a a shot of Renton looking up with a rectangle frame creating a sense that he is in a coffin and he is dying.
Throughout the duration of this film I was highly captivated, by multiple factors; the story-telling, the soundtrack and overall personality’s of characters. A memorable scene for me was when Mark Renton overdosed and was taken to hospital. This stood out to me sue to the soundtrack and the cinematography within this scene.
In this screen grab from this moment, before he overdoses the carpet falls into the ground creating a coffin shape that it falls in. This moment stands out due to the symbolism, the coffin shape representing his life slipping away from him. The carpet slipping is filmed at a low angle showing the moment in focus which I think makes it more powerful to me. It also stands out due to this whimsical event, we see this in the toilet scene it shows the effect that drugs have on their viewpoint and what they perceive.
Personally I enjoyed this film. It has a sense of culture to it. People from the UK would understand and recognise the movie for what it is. A main reason for the high score is because of the soundtrack. With iconic songs like Bornslippy made the movie for me. For me the movie is almost an advert on why yo shouldn’t do drugs. It shows off a heroin addict in the worst and true way living in Scotland.
At some point I couldn’t watch and thought where to much. Especially when they showed needles where I couldn’t watch. Other than that the movie was great and I highly recommend.
Memorable scene
A memorable scene for me is the last period of the movie where Mark Renton has just taken the drug money from the hotel. It has a voice over of Renton explaining he is now clean from drugs and is going off to live his life. The final scene is Spud being given a chunk of money Renton left him as he felt that Spud was the one who deserved it.
I really enjoyed this film. my score out of 10 would be 8.5/10. there are some very realistic scenes and representations of how British politics created a legacy of disaster for Scotland specifically. There’s no censoring in this film which allows the audience to be shown what the realities of living in Scotland during the heroin and AIDS epidemic was really like.
The exploration of gender is very interesting to, as topics like gender expression in a place like Scotland during the mid to late 90s would have been very stigmatised.
a scene which was memorable for me was when Renton went to Tommy’s apartment. Renton was now clean and trying to get himself together, while Tommy was deep in the pits of addiction and had contracted AIDS. there is a parallel between Tommy and Renton as before Tommy was using heroin he represented the middle class of Scotland which had not been affected by the terrors of drug abuse. Renton represents the disease of drug abuse and how it can ruin peoples lives, e.g. the events of Renton stealing Tommy’s sex tape lead him to using heroin and eventually dying.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
TIME CODE 5:31
In this scene as well as many others we can see the character Swanny, also known as Mother Superior. Every time we see this character he is in the drug den surrounded by a sinister red light. The red light in this film represents all of Renton’s vices; sex, drugs, death, and everything else that is stopping Renton from “choosing life” When the audience sees the red light they know that Renton or one of his friends will most likely be using heroin, this creates a sense of anxiety within the spectator.
Monaco talks about the different artistic expressions such as visual arts, performing arts, literary arts and film. He describes that with visual arts these single moments are unchangeable. Performing arts, is a form of art that has a distinct narrative and are often performed live. Literary arts involve poetry, novels and essays, this array of literary arts show deep emotion through storytelling. All these artistic expressions fall under the roof of ‘film,’ they are all forms of art in their own way.
They way Monaco speaks about advancing technology can change the idea of film in whole different way. They way technology is now we can watch every film on demand (the film will always be available to watch whenever). This withdraws the excitement of watching film live. They only way we have access to live film is performing arts. He also allows us to know that film can indicate and help people’s emotional and political views on the world.
This is shot from a slightly low angle, and from the side, you can see both of them. It almost creates a parallel possibly showing there similarly.
Eye level
The camera shows Chiron at eye level, this was used possibly to show his feelings and emotions clearly, while being over the shoulder of Kevin to almost see it from Kevin’s viewpoint.
High
This shows the people Chiron is intimidated by at a higher level showing the possible fear that he has looking down at theme, the main one of the groups is also facing the direction of the camera showing the fear from Chiron.
Shot Distance
BCU
A character looking down the Lense of the camera, breaks the fourth wall. This creates a personal effect for the viewer. You’re looking at him in the eyes, showing the personal moment that is happening now. This also shows the dramatic moment that is about to happen and the intensity of the moment.
ML
Having the camera this dances away from the character shows a powerful effect having the character looking off into the distance. This creates a dramatic scene possibly showing the reflection of the character.
LS
Shooting far away from the character possibly signifies loneliness having a large space around the character creates the effect of isolation within the character
Camera Movements
Track out – Track in
The Camrea starts from viewing Chiron from a distance on the field, then slowly tracks into him. This could represent to the viewer the disconnect he feels from the over children playing. The camera’s focus is him, and he stands unlike the over kids. The movement shows the following of Chiron.
Ped Up – Ped Down
The camera moves from showing Juan tom slowly moving down to Chiron, this could show the relationship between the two characters and how it is starting on Jaun higher up could show how Chiron looks up to him.
Pan Left – Pan Right
The camera moves to show both sides of Chiron in this scene as well as moving the composition to show Juan and how Chiron reacts in the same moment. This also shows the connection between the two
