TRAINSPOTTING FEATURE
Training SBSSiO“ Train reaction
Truirzs/mlri'iig‘s authenticity is partly down to the involvement of a Glasgow drug rehabilitation project. Calton Athletic. Fiona Shepherd gauges the group‘s reaction to the movie.
it one of lit/irry/mt/ine's titteasier scenes. Renton
sits in the Mother Superior”s ramshackle ahode.
eagerly tightening the tourniquet on his arm while
his host polters around in the kitchen. lle decides
to hypass the starter and ctit straight to the main
eyent. ‘the intravenous helping of drugs'. In a
sequence w hich shares some of the ar'tiness of 'l‘i'ay olta
in I’ll/p I’ll {lit/r and some of the stark realism of ls'eitel
tn The Hut! /.n':/.'ti:.;n;. actor liyyan .\lc(iregor imitates
shooting tip with .i precision that suggests he's had e\perl tuition. ()l that‘s what (‘allon .-\thletic say.
’l'he drug rehahilitalion protect.
currently hased in l)ennrstolin htrt shortly to move to
(ilasyyegran
more central premises. played. not for the first time. a pivotal role in the making of a film. The recently repeated Screen ()iie film .l.’/l‘e .‘lllt/ [vie/sine was inspired h)" the l‘roiect's foothall learn and said team now grace the opening credits of 'li'inits/rolling.
'l‘he noyel had hecoriie a fayourite among rnemhers of the cluh. lleptrty l)a\id .\lain descrrhes its portrayal of heroin addiction as ’spot-on‘.
l’t'ttIL‘L'l Leader adding: "l‘hei‘e's a lot of honesty to it hecatise it shows the funny side and the harsh realities like lll\'.'
‘\\’ilhin hours of us discussing the novel.‘ continues protect leader l);l\ltl Bryce. ‘wc got a phone call frorn [director] llanny Boy le asking could he come and talk to us. ()n the Sunday night he and lpi'odticer] Andrew .\lacl)onald were presented w ith a B.-\l-'l‘.-\ for .S/rii/lorr' (ii-iii e and the nest night they turned up at our meeting and l lhiiik that‘s quite a compliment.‘
On their ne\t \isrl they hrotight liwan .\lc(iregor who ahsorhed the honesty of the addicts' confessional discussions. Danny Boyle \\;.\ sufficiently impressed hy the weekly ~':pi‘eserit;itiy e to he air .idy isor on the film and liamonn Doher‘ty hecame 'Ii'iit/iy/m/li/ie's resident ‘cooket‘y‘ e\pert. demonstrating to the cast how to prepare and miect a shot. while stories from the meetings informed the film's ‘cold turkey” sequence. However. if Bryce and Main are to he helieyed. the cast was in as much instruction on the foothall field as in the
\agarres of drug addiction.
group's meetings to ask for' a
need ot
\Vllllt‘ the stats' footie skills could he called into LlllC\llUll. tuttc rill lllL' memher's til. (‘dllttti Athletic \\llt) hay e already seen the filth hay e found fatilt with any aspect of the drug storylines. and Bryce and \lain are particularly conymced hy the withdrawal scene.
treatment of the
"they '\e not sold olil.' says .\lairi. "l‘hey ‘y'e stuck to what they 'ye heard. The withdrawal was good. all the guilt. liyerything's starting to come hack to him. Your
Kicking the habit: Calton Athletlc’s ilve-a-side team were an example to Trainspotting’s sorry crew (above)
emotions start coming hack and you think ahout all the things you‘ye done. It's all coming at Itltl miles per hour through your head; you can't sleep and it's scary \ltllil...
'l'he filmmakers‘ intention has ney er heen to preach. merely to show No matter what the approach. there are hound to he headlines from quarters. hut ('alton Athletic are unstinttng in their support of ’Ii'ii/ily/mlrr/ig.
Asked how he thinks an audience might feel ahout heroin after seeing the filrtt. Bryce asserts: ‘lt'll certainly not encourage them. What harm can it do. showing what it's all ahout‘.’ 'l'hat's what we do in the schools. deglainor'ise something that appears attractive to young people hy telling the truth ahotit lll\'. rohhrng your family. the prostitution. it's not shock. it's the truth.
"l‘he crew did the hest research they could and I‘m delighted .'\t the end of the day it'll hi'rng more people throusfh the door of ('alton .-\thletic and that‘s what‘s
sensationalist some
horror
llL‘L'tl‘s‘tl.‘ I’l'ur'i'i'i/y [I‘ll/ll I/lt' li‘iiiiry/mlliite [tl't’llllt’l‘t'y III (i/tivqmi ii/lu' /'.i/I/l/trire/I it‘ll/ go to (ti/III}! .vlt/i/i'lri'.
'I‘mi'nspiwing has reached cult status among sections of Scottish youth. hut what do those in authority make of it all'.’
Jan Fairley, director, Edinburgh Book Festival.
‘Welsh is telling us something ahotit post-Thatcher Britain. and you register that it's the tip of an iceherg. Michael Billington tT/tt' (Juan/run) argued in his review of the play that good drama should he offering some kind of prescription or hope. htit people don't think that way anymore. Welsh doesn't romance the notion of the community or the working class.‘
Roy Henderson, head of English, Leith Academy
‘As teachers we tend to avoid landmines like this hecause parents will get hung-up on the foul language and activities and allow that to overwhelm arty value it might have. The hook has been criticised for its lack of moral stance. and while there is a degree of sensationalism that attracts kids to the hook. the very fact that it moves consideration of the underclass so far up the social agenda is in itself a type of moral coinment.’
Joyce Parker, project manager, The Links Project (rehabilitation unit for heroin users) ‘A lot of our residents have read it. I've worked in drugs for quite a longtime and I think people would he horrified to .see how low you could get. I'd say it is very true of what is still happening..
Scottish Office spokesman ‘Irrtilrs/mrliire is a work of fiction. Scotland's drug prohlein is a fact. it is hoped that the film. using language and settings that young people can relate to. will drive home the misery and despair drugs cart cause.‘
Liz Skelton, manager, Crew 2000 (saier drug use project) ‘It doesn't really- deal with the area we work in [dance drugs]. htit among the volunteers. most of tlteiu have read it. One person in particular who had never read anything hefore. was given a copy of 'li'iiiiisporriire and he's got all of li'vine Welsh's hooks nowf
David Liddel, director, Scottish Drugs Forum
‘lt is certainly a useful read for holicy makers. It gives them an understanding of some of the real. day to day. issues in particular communities which are most affected. We attempt to reduce the gap hetween those with the pr'ohlems and those making the decisions. A hook like this does. to some estent. help the process.’
Eleanor McLaughlin, Labour councillor for Muirhouse, Edinburgh and chairperson, Waverley Care Trust
‘l've known an awful lot of kids on junk — and I think the intellectuals and middle classes who‘ve read it ['I'I'iri/i.\'/mrliiie] after it’s hecome lamous are prohably learning something ahout the atmosphere that makes kids sink into that kitid of life. his a work of art — it's making people aware that drug culture is something that's yery complex. But as far as stopping youngsters taking drugs. I think it'll have izo effect whzitsoey er hecattse there are very colitple\ reasons why youngsters go to that kind of tl'iiiig.'
Drugs on film
Roll up. roll tip. says Thom Dihdin. for the top ten drugs movies of all time.
Reeier Madness r 1 outs (iasnier. 103m .-\ killer is stalking the latid: the most pernicious and dangerous ever to visit a community near you. Yes. pot. my friends. the dreaded reefer. will turn you into a pr'ostitute-honking. girlfriend- mtirdei'ing. i;l//~li.steiiiilg tnaniac. Just say no. kids.
The Man With The Golden Arm t()tlo l’i'eminger‘. W55)
Junkie l-‘rank Sinatra tries to hit the heat as a ia/x. drummer. hut gets ptit off- tempo hy the dealing hahit. .\'ot particularly authentic. htit a landliiark as
heroin addiction hits Hollywood for the first time. The soundtrack is pretty hot though.
The Trip (Roger (‘ormatL l‘)(i7i Hedonism without retrrhution for Peter l-‘onda as he drops a trip and. like wow. swirls into a psychedelic fairy land of hikini-clad hahes and y isual cliches. l‘un. hut not much of a movie.
Up In Smoke tl.olr Adler. trnsi
There is no higher level of humour than (‘heech and (‘hong‘s farce ahotit getting a van made entirely from weed into the country, Any more spaced-out and it would he xi/ml/o I}.
Scarface (Brain l)e l’alma. NS?!
.-\l Pacino i'ises arid rises through the mob in Miami. only to meet his \Vaterloo in an orgy of machine-gun may hem. Brit not hefore he's stuck his hooter into a mountain ofcoke the size of the annual Bolivian crop. (itiess yy ho won't he needing the \'icks any more.
Withnail & I (Bruce Rohiltsoit. l‘).S(il liverything frorn hleach to htirgundy is
imhihed hy the eponymous duo as they hang ahout waiting for a toh. But it‘s the (‘amherwell ('aii'ot. inyented in (‘amhei'yy ell and the si/e ot a carrot. which earns tlits movie its place Ill (ireat Spliffs ()f ( )ur Time,
Altered States i ts’t-n Rtlsst‘ll. tusm Serious regression comes \Villrarn lluit's way after a hath iii a sensory deprivation tank with a ltrriip of inescaline. (iratuitottsly ()‘l'l‘ as you'd expect from Rtissell. hut giy es a yalid y isual espression to the physical effects of halhtcinogenics.
Drugstore Cowboy
Drugstore Cowboy t( ms \‘.in Sand. WW) Matt Dillon leads his desperatios around the drugstores of l’oitluld. l lr'egorl. stealing the contents ot their
[‘lltit tllttccttltt‘al salt“. .-\\ y'ltlSL' ttS Hollywood has got to e\plaining the pull of the yapid erilptrnz‘ss ot iunkiedoiii. lust don‘t put your hat on th.‘ l‘ed.
Rush tl.lll l’irli /.ar:t;ck. l‘l‘llr
Drug stpiad cops. letiliifer .lasoti l_eigh and Jason l’atiic. go a little too deep into their cover and yr. old up shooting up heroin. (hilly. inks key, .lowtrheat and nasttly realistic \'y'liei -/)/.'i.:y'.ue
t 'urifmy' esplains the .rttitctron. this illustrates the llriikm's crash into ant:- soct.il ohlry toil,
Betty‘s Brood t .\l:ci. .\lc( ‘onztcil. Yr. s. the Scots can do drug: :iioy res helter' and more authentzcally th..n anyone else
pull.
Slade on .i shoestring hudget hy the (iorl‘als l'zrelripioyed Workers (Venue. this is an almost too realistic account of life. death. drug addiction and disease lll present-day (ilasgow
'l‘he list 0—33 l'ch l‘Wh 13