1. The Angel’s share and Trainspotting
Borders and Belonging
The Angel’s share and Trainspotting

2. Opening Sequences
Both films begin with a conflict with authority, In The Angels Share we see albert rebel against the authority in the train station and then end up in court over it.
Similarly, Trainspotting’s opening sequence contains Renton and Spud running away from security guards, this shows that they are also struggling with people in power.
The mise-en-scen in both give the audience an idea of the class of the characters in these films, for example the clothes the characters are wearing old T-shirts and groggy track suit bottoms.
Both films have a montage sequence at the beginning in order to introduce the friendship groups. This is included to show their characters’ personalities quickly in order to create a dynamic between characters in the films. The montage edits also quickly establish how they are of a lower class and how they are perceived by other members of society.
Both openings are non-linear, which shows that we know that Renton at some point in the future will get into trouble, and in the past, the characters of angels share have got themselves into trouble. Both of these openings relate to the Scottish identity, as it contributes to the idea of the Scottish characters being anti-social and petty criminals.

3. The interior camera in the car looks out on Renton, displaying just how much the class Renton and Spud are in juxtaposes with that of the average middle class people. The angels share also uses this technique to show how lower class people are frowned upon by higher classes.
The Scottish are represented as anti-social because the main characters are in trouble with authority. This is how the Scottish identity is represented in both films, which could be how the two directors view the Scottish. The two directors are English and maybe have a biased view on the Scottish.
The colours at the start are de-saturated and this may represent Scotland as dull and boring. This may have to do with both directors being English, and representing how they see Scotland from a visual perspective.

4. Middle sequence
The middle sequence in Trainspotting is when Renton goes to London and when Robbie visits the whiskey tasting. We discover a greater talent within our characters at this time where we see Renton become an estate agent and Robbie realise he has a talent for smelling things. This puts our characters one step closer to improving themselves.
Trainspotting’s middle sequence changes the tone and makes it more up-beat and shows the start of the light and the end of the tunnel. The same can be said for The Angels’ Share as Robbie has shown his talent for whiskey tasting.
They are both given opportunities in this sequence- of jobs and security. It’s a turning point for their characters.
It’s also the point where we see how the class of our characters contrast with others, Renton moves to London and him being Scottish makes him appear to be a lower class. The same can be said for Robbie as he interacts with the upper class at the whiskey meeting shows the audience how Robbie is so different from the people found in middle and upper classes.
A low angle shot of Edinburgh is included to show the characters in the angels share look small compared to the castle. A montage of London in trainspotting is also included to make Renton look small compared to the active world of London. These sequences represent how the characters have little impact on the world and the regions they are currently in, and also show that their belonging has changed slightly due to the change in environment.

5. Final sequence
The message and values at the end show that it doesn’t matter where you start; it’s about the decisions in life that get you where you want to be.
Also, their identification of the protagonists has changed: Robbie has the chance to start a new life with his wife and son. Renton has a chance to start a new life with the money, but like Robbie he attained this new lease of life through crime.
Crime is shown as a saviour in both films, contradicting the norm. Renton uses the money from a large drug deal to restart his life and faces no known consequences. The same can be said for Robbie who steals valuable whiskey to also begin a new life as a family man without any consequence. This is in slight contradiction to the characters new found morale's, as they swore to turn over a new leaf, but have done so both by stealing.
We see Renton and Robbie separated from their friends at the end, this shows how throughout the film it was their friends dragging them down and only without that border can our characters progress.
The films compare in terms of one of the final shots, which show both main characters walking away from their past (driving in Robbie’s case) and this is done to show (visually) how their identification has changed due to the choices they made toward the end of the film. This also shows how both characters’ borders have been broadened and they now have a renewed sense of belonging. It also shows how they are not now restricted to the region of Scotland and are now looking towards new things as opposed to facing their past which is staying back in Scotland.

6. Values of the films
Both of these films show the bad aspects of life, especially trainspotting which deals with drug abuse. They have deep messages and meanings, The Angels’ Share shows that people can change and improve their lives for the better. Trainspotting’s main message is to stay away with drugs and it really paints a clear picture of the dangers and effects.