“Spring Breakers” isn’t a movie; it’s a colorful mind-numbing experience. Director Harmony Korine (“Kids”, “Trash Humpers”) brings audiences into his depraved re-imagination of St. Petersburg for the next 90 minutes.
After a lengthy opening party montage set to Skrillex’s “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites”, the movie cuts to stars Selena Gomez (“Hotel Transylvania”), Vanessa Hudgens (“Sucker Punch”), Ashley Benson (“Pretty Little Liars”) and Rachel Korine (“Trash Humpers”) as college students far away from the party frustrated with their lives in need of their own spring break adventure.
Gomez is the stereotypically religious member of the group of friends who finds herself along for the ride, despite her friends’ terrible influences. There is a degree of fun to be had seeing Disney girls (Gomez and Hudgens) go bad.
Eventually the group manages to gather money for a spring break trip (through not so legal means) and make their way down to our very own St. Petersburg, though not one that we’re familiar with. It’s at that point where the movie becomes a prolonged music video, with lots of shots of extras partying, drinking, smoking pot, getting naked and snorting cocaine.
If it sounds gratuitous, that’s because it is. But at the same time, its hypnotic — the editing, cinematography and music are absorbing in these scenes. For those who disapprove of the content, at least admire the filmmaking.
When things do go wrong for the four leads, James Franco (“Oz the Great and Powerful”), fully committed to his role as the rapper named Alien, comes into the picture to bail them out. This is when the director finally finds his story again and sends these characters down a darker path.
It’s interesting for a while, but the movie loses its fast pacing and the director’s habit of letting scenes repeat themselves becomes bothersome. The film loses manages to lose its grounded tone entirely in its preposterous fever dream-like climax. And the only thought left by the end of the movie is, “What was that?”
It’s hard to tell someone if he or she will like “Spring Breakers.” Some will call it trash, others might appreciate it for showing something not often seen in movies. “Spring Breakers” is, at the very least, worth seeing at some point as long as you have an idea of what you’re getting into.
