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This film has got pretty much all the elements to a shitstorm of failure. Douchebag culture, teeny bop stalwarts, dubstep, a white guy in cornrows, and Harmony Korine (director of Gummo, writer of Kids), a filmmaker who seems determined to make his films as inaccessible as possible. Strangely, it all comes together in a flawed but very intense, immersive, and unique cinematic experience. Who'da thunk it?
Spring Breakers is easily the most plot-driven film Korine has ever written or directed. A group of college students hungry to party rob a diner and take a bus to Florida for spring break, which they could otherwise never afford. Much nakedness, intoxication, and mayhem occurs. The girls get busted and thrown in jail only to be bailed out by Alien (James Franco), a rapper/drug/arms dealer. More nakedness, intoxication, and mayhem occurs (this time with lots of guns). Enter Gucci Mane as a rival criminal and... that's about it.
Err... I think most of you guys are gonna have to leave your screenwriting brains at the door and count your blessings that Korine was even willing to give you this much. He's not exactly a plot kinda guy.
Anyway, I'm not really sure what to make of this one. Unlike Korine's previous films, this one sticks to a select group of characters but plot is sparse. Shit happens but it doesn't really lead up to anything. The characters barely get any development at all. Selena Gomez's Faith is differentiated from the group given that she's more prudish and religious but even this isn't explored too much. There's sort of a tragic "crying clown" element to Franco's character but the moment where it seems his more vulnerable side is going to come out, the film moves along as usual. Dialogue is sparse, to say the least.
There's a lot of voice-over from the girls, often directed toward a family member, in which they describe spring break as a transcendent spiritual experience juxtaposed with images that suggest just the opposite. The film is all about superficiality and it knows that but I'm not sure if there's any particular commentary or even exploration that it's trying to get at. I feel like there's something to be said about the synthetic and vacuous nature of contemporary party culture and the human disconnect created by things like the media and the Internet. But I wouldn't presume to have any idea what goes on in Harmony Korine's head. So much of what he says makes no sense to me. So I guess it's on the viewer to extrapolate a bigger picture.
So, what does that leave us? Indeed, it doesn't seem like the film's got much going for it.
Harmony Korine's described the film as a sensory experience. I actually think this is the best way to go into it. The film is still extremely dynamic. It doesn't glorify party culture but rather shows it as dirty and debased as it actually is. Everything is drenched in an aura of lust, sleaze, hedonism, and destruction and it tends not to let up. Even the film's quieter moments have a lurid atmosphere bubbling underneath. The narrative really goes its merry way and everything seems to happen for no reason, giving the film an unhinged and chaotic feel.
The cinematography is amazing. Gaspar Noe alumnus Benoit Debie, who's really gotta have one of the best reels in the business at this point, drenches everything in lurid neon and black light. The resulting psychedelic look enhances what's happening onscreen and makes it all feel like an acid trip.
Franco's character and performance really help give a face to the film. Totally freakish and seemingly cursed to an eternity of maintaining the same superficial, excessive, and indulgent persona. Again, the "crying clown" thing. Gucci Mane makes a good counterpart as well. He's gotta be one of the creepiest, sleaziest scumbags the gangster rap world has ever vomited out. The girls as a group essentially form a composite character whose thirst for mayhem is seemingly unquenchable and escalates to a borderline sociopathic climax. Individually, they're pretty interchangeable.
The film has also granted me a wish I never knew I had: seeing a character get pistol-whipped to a Britney Spears song.
Well... This was a surprisingly hard review to write but I think it'll be easy to sum up. Spring Breakers is nuts, despite being Harmony Korine's most accessible effort to date. Completely illogical but dark, lurid, and I think ultimately entertaining. Again, probably not suited for a screenwriting mindset but still worth a watch. If there's a film that merits getting hammered or taking a bong rip before heading to the theater, this is probably it. It's definitely the kind of film where the WTF factor is worth taking into account.
Excellent review, James. Aside from the obvious aesthetic allure, this does look very promising. Once this is out in the UK, my eyes will be glued to the bikinischicks screen.
Franco's character is actually called Alien in the film. I'm not aware of any rapper named Alien actually existing... unless I've missed some tasty morsel of info.
As for the Riff Raff connection, it's definitely been speculated that Franco took inspiration from the rapper and recently been publicized that the rapper isn't too happy about Franco jocking his style, so to speak. So far, I haven't come across any indication that the character was indeed inspired by Riff Raff.
What I did find was that the character was in part inspired by the Florida indie rapper, Dangeruss, who appears in the film alongside Franco.
Honestly, if I thought the character was supposed to be based on me but I didn't receive any acknowledgement for it, I'd probably keep my mouth shut. Alien is a loser and also kind of a poser. The girls in the film practically make him their bitch. In short, not exactly terms a rapper wants to be associated with.
I'm also kind of shocked at how many people are looking forward to this one. Can anybody tell me what the appeal is? Not to disparage anyone's personal taste; I'm genuinely curious.
Me, I've been destined to look at the marketing through tinted lenses. I am more than familiar with Korine's style, which, for the most part, I've found to be both tedious and repellent. Not sure which side the scales lean toward more. Part of what intrigued me about this one is how totally different it looks from Korine's previous work (except Kids, I guess). I figured if not truly the perfect storm of all the right wrong things, it would actually be pretty interesting (which is was).
I guess if I didn't know anything about Korine, I'd think this was another Project X-type situation or just some lame hipster movie about spring break. But I guess I'll never know for sure.
Shit! I meant Dangeruss. WHY did I write Alien? o_O
Yea, he's based on him. I have no personal desire to see Franco's character.
What appeals to me about this movie is the fact that the three girls in the cast are stepping out of their comfort zones and don't give a fuck about it, really.
It's nice to see they're not being type-casted. And the fact that they supposedly make Franco their bitch make's me even more excited. Plus, I haven't seen any of Korine's work pior to seeing the trailer, and to me it loos good.
It just seems like a real fun indie awesome fun movie. Not Oscar worthy, not award winning. But it looks like something, to me, I will really enjoy and want to see again once leaving the cinema.
-- Curt
"No matter what you do, your job is to tell your story..."
I saw this on Sunday. It was okay – I’m all for independent films but I hate when they’re marketed as mainstream films for the everyday movie-goer. This was all style and no substance.
Besides Selena Gomez’s character, Faith, who sticks out from the other three, I really wouldn’t be able to differentiate the girls from each other. It also really irritated me that (SPOILERS) Faith simply goes home and is not seen for the rest of the movie around halfway point.
I really liked the cinematography and the way Harmony filmed it – I liked the little moments; like the girls hanging out in the hallways of their dorm and dancing on the walls with their feet or when they’re out on the beach and scooters… it is filmed very well and the score fits it exceptionally well.
James Franco did great. He made me feel uncomfortable and it’s great to see that his performance in ‘127 Hours’ wasn’t a fluke. The girls did well too – I suppose, given their material. I didn’t really care for the main gangster guy that was Alien’s nemesis. He was by far the weakest link acting wise.
I left disappointed because I expected something darker – like the remaining two girls unexpectedly taking Alien out in order to escape and go back home to their ‘boring ol life’. Instead we get this ending that is like “Reallllly nowwww?” (I have no intentions on spoiling it).