Trainspotting (1996) Case Study

Trainspotting 1996 – Danny Boyle

The 1996 film ‘Trainspotting’ was distributed by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment as well as Miramax Films. Trainspotting was given an 18 certificate by the BBFC whereas the trailer was awarded a 15 due to the limited violence and other ’18 related themes’ that could be seen.

Film Specifics
The Cast – Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Johnny Lee Miller, Kevin Mckidd, Robert Carlyle, Kelly Macdonald
Budget – £1,550,000

Box Office – $72,000,000

Filming Locations – Although the film was set in Edinburgh, most of the filming was done in Glasgow and some ending scenes shot in London.

As a group we have decided to focus on ‘Trainspotting’ as one of our case studies as it reflects a different depiction of the social realist genre, however still manages to share the similar conventions of a social realist film.

Target Audience
The budget of $1,550,000 was one of the first features I noticed when analysing this case study. Although $1,550,000 is typically regarded as a lot of money, in terms of film production, the budget is very limiting. This is usually a common theme between UK Social Realist films as they are less likely to receive as much funding in comparison to a more commercial successful genre such as action because Social Realist films are targeted to niche audiences of a C2, D and E socio-economic bracket despite their increasing popularity.

Narrative Another feature that particularly stood out to me was the narrative. Trainspotting focuses on the protagonist ‘Renton’, who is greatly involved in the Edinburgh drug scene. His aim however is to clean up and get out despite facing distraction from drugs and friends. Cleverly this was not completed illustrated through the trailer which is common among teaser trailers as the aim is to entice the audience into watching the film. Although not all Social Realist films focus on drugs, Trainspotting shares the similar intention of a character in distress on dissatisfied with their current position is society, and trying to do better for themselves and/or those around them. This is also supports the idea of an escapist theme which we have associated with a film of the social realism genre.

Success
Trainspotting did really well in terms of critical success. After screening in Cannes as well as global cinema distributions the film ended up being the highest grossing film in Britain in 1996 and the fourth highest grossing film in British History at the time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9ZNKGrpnKM&safe=active

Camera Shots and Angles

 This image has been taken from a scene in Trainspotting. This can be described as an establishing shot which is common among all film genres but is usually significant to revealing the emotions of the characters involved as well as exposing the environment in which the characters tend to want to escape to or from.

The use of a close up shot is effective within a social realism film, especially at the beginning as it allows the audience to decipher the personalities of the characters presented within the film. The opinions of the characters tend to change as the movie proceeds but the initial connection between audience and characters within the film is necessary for the audience to fully connect with the film and therefore emote with characters.

 

Completed by Abena Amoako