Daily Dialogue — April 6, 2017

1st Interviewer: Mr. Murphy, do you mean that you lied on your application?
Spud: No! Uh. Yes. Only to get my foot in the door. Showing initiative and that like.
1st Interviewer: But you were referred here by the department of employment, there was no need for you to get your “foot in the door,” as you put it.
Spud: Ehhh… cool. Whatever you say, I’m sorry. You’re the man. The dude in the chair.

— Trainspotting (1996), screenplay by John Hodge, novel by Irvine Welsh

The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Job Interview.

Trivia: There has been some confusion over the film’s title, as none of that particular activity actually takes place in the film (apart from Renton forced to stay inside his bedroom which has train-themed wallpaper). Irvine Welsh has since gone on record to explain the title, stating that it started out as a euphemism for taking drugs (often done at a train station). The term gradually evolved to be describe an obsessive hobby that is not understood by people who do not practice it. Welsh thus compared the unusual hobby to heroin addiction, i.e, something that only the people who indulge in that pastime truly understand. To them, it makes perfect sense.

Dialogue On Dialogue: Spud is dimmest member of the crew, something he demonstrates quite well in this job interview.