Daily Dialogue — July 4, 2014
“Choose Life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family. Choose a fucking big television, choose washing machines, cars, compact disc players and electrical tin openers. Choose good health, low cholesterol, and dental insurance. Choose fixed interest mortgage repayments. Choose a starter home. Choose your friends. Choose leisurewear and matching luggage. Choose a three-piece suit on hire purchase in a range of fucking fabrics. Choose DIY and wondering who the fuck you are on Sunday morning. Choose sitting on that couch watching mind-numbing, spirit-crushing game shows, stuffing fucking junk food into your mouth. Choose rotting away at the end of it all, pissing your last in a miserable home, nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish, fucked up brats you spawned to replace yourselves. Choose your future. Choose life… But why would I want to do a thing like that? I chose not to choose life. I chose somethin’ else. And the reasons? There are no reasons. Who needs reasons when you’ve got heroin?”
— Trainspotting (1996), Irvine Welsh (novel), John Hodge (screenplay)
The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Addiction. Today’s suggestion by pgronk.
Trivia: References to The Beatles:
*The scene where the store detectives chase Renton down the street is reminiscent of the scene in A Hard Day’s Night (1964) where The Beatles are pursued by fans.
* While watching the train, the four friends arrange themselves in the same manner as The Beatles did on the back of the album “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”.
* The scene where the four friends cross the road and enter the hotel is reminiscent of the cover of the album “Abbey Road”.
* The scene where Renton wakes up on the couch in the morning at Diane’s home and says hello to someone passing through the hallway while covered with a blanket to his chin, is reminiscent of a scene in Help! (1965) where Ringo is found in a trunk of a car covered up with a blanket, and upon being found, says hello.
* The “Mother Superior’s” written in the dealer house is a reference to the Beatles song Happiness is a Warm Gun, a song about heroin, which has the line “mother superior jump the gun”.
Dialogue On Dialogue: The very beginning of the movie in voice-over narration over images of Renton and company being chased by the local police. It’s not only a nice active opening, it also lays out clearly much of the thematic content of the movie.
If you have a suggestion for this week’s theme, please post in comments. Thanks!
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