Trainspotting: Themes and Binary Opposites

The theme of the past vs future is prevalent throughout the film as the scene in which Renton is in a club later on in the film as he narrates how everything is changing like music, drugs, and people as techno plays in the background and also the soundtrack has a lot of techno reinforcing this idea of changing times. Also an earlier scene close to the beginning where Renton is in another club contrasts with the later scene to express the change which is occurring as the earlier scene shows people drinking alcohol whilst people dance to generic 80s rock whereas the later scene people are on ecstasy and are having a rave also the places in which these scenes take place are different as the earlier scene takes place in Leith and the later scene takes place in London also the change in drugs as Renton talks about ecstasy becoming a lot more popular as the popularity of heroin losing popularity as this change in the film shows the change of culture from the 80s to 90s within these two scenes.  

Renton develops as time progresses throughout the film as he was once stuck in the past with his other friends he has now changed which leads on to another theme which is present in the film which is Betrayal. As Renton develops as a character he begins to hate the friends he had in the beginning thus leading to the ending of the film where Renton steals the money from the drug deal and escapes with the money and escapes the friendship he despised. And within that friend group two friends Begby and Spud are on two opposite spectrums as Begby is the most aggressive person in the friend group as in one of the final scenes in he bar presents this and how Renton is in the middle of both of them as Spud is presented to be more childlike and scared which is shown in the betrayal scene as Spud sees Renton is leaving and even though Renton somewhat offers Spud to come with him he doesn't showing how Spud is more scared of Begby and Sick Boy.  

Throughout the film a major theme which is prevalent is heroin and how it effects the characters and the world around them as the main character Renton uses heroin and heroin is used as an opposite to may other themes within the film such as for example family as Renton's parents are presented as a force which tries to get him to quit which is shown in the withdrawal scene as they kept him locked in his room. The scenes which have the parents are usually very bland with dark and dull colours always present giving those scenes a depressing, boring tone whereas the scenes which include heroin or drugs are usually in brightly coloured rooms with multiple colours and lights present.