Thursday, March 28, 2019

Trainspotting; Club and Sex Scene

Club/Sex Scene

This scene begins with a wide shot of a nightclub setting, with strobe lighting which sets the period of the 80s/90s, and shows a young couple making out in the center of the shot. This then cuts to follow the main characters, most separated with various unknown girls, for example Begbie over-exaggeratedly making gestures to impress a woman and Sick Boy being intimate with a girl. These contrast to the shot of Renton who is awkwardly dancing along to 'Temptation' by  Heaven 17.  His clothing really reflects the period, especially the yellow patterned crop top with the shaved head. His surroundings show him to be amongst other socially awkward men (could be the rejects), which  might make it quite humourous. These men wear various common day outfits, such as a jacket, shirt and tie. 

To add to the comedy genre, in big subtitles at the bottom the conversation between Spud and Tommy are translated, since they're shouting over blaring music (which adds to the realism), even the font is in an upbeat style. The camera slowly pans into their conversation from a distance, showing the 'Clockwork Orange' references along the walls, relating to the current media and similarities. The conversation topics of their relationships and sex, known common topics between friends, is shown through humour. The closeness of the camera adds an inclusive feel to the conversation, yet enables us to still see the main interior between them. As they're discussing, fast paced editing cuts to their girlfriends talking about the same thing, continuing the conversation, which adds a comedic effect, for example the horrified tonality in which Tommy says 'useless mother******'. When the girls arrive, the low angle shows their dominance when they say 'what're you two talkin about?'. The quick movements and in-time speech adds humour due to the dramatic irony and relatableness.

When Renton first sees Diane, the music instantly changes to 'Atomic' by Sleeper. This give the idea of an intense love -at-first sight motif which Renton feels. Diane is in solitude, highlighted by a spotlight, with an outfit that makes her stand out from the rest. With slicked hair, short glittery dress she looks very classy for a nightclub and a complete contrast. The rotated shot of Renton acts as if it's in slow motion and gives us time to focus on his facial expressions. This is then followed by outside shots of Renton going after Diane, involving a teasing monologue which she says to confuse him. 

The scene that follows is one of quick paced editing which reflects the emotional peak of their night. It involves three different sex scenes all happening at the same time, two of which resulting in major consequences to the narrative. The non-diegetic music with a heavy involvement of a drum beat creates an intense tonality to it, creating an atmosphere. The three couples act very differently within each scene, the main one being Diane being dominant and professional about it (and her being on top (which makes the plot twist even funnier)). Whereas Spud, who previously said he hasn’t had sex in weeks, has gotten so drunk he’s fallen asleep and Tommy has mistakenly put in the wrong VHS tape (one which Renton stole and swapped). These scenes display the shift in the film, especially for Tommy. 

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