Spring Breakers

Movies set during spring break tend to portray it as one massive party, where people make mistakes that ultimately get resolved. But Harmony Korine's Spring Breakers shows that when things go wrong, they stay wrong.

The story follows four college girls who dream of going on a spring break trip to Florida, but can't raise the funds. Three of the girls, Candy (Vanessa Hudgens), Brit (Ashley Benson) and Cotty (Rachel Korine), decide to rob a fast food joint to get the money. They come back to Faith (Selena Gomez) and take off to Florida.

Once there, the girls start partying like crazy. But after one party, they end up getting arrested on drug charges. They soon get bailed out by local gangster and celebrity, Alien (James Franco). He takes them in and offers to help them out if they need money. Faith feels threatened by him and decides to go back home.

The others stay and start doing robberies with Alien and it's only when Cotty gets shot do things start to get shaky. Cotty decides to go home as well. Candy, Brit and Alien start to develop a relationship and Alien confesses that he is feeling threatened by his former best friend and he decides to take him out, despite the fact that he is scared. Brit and Candy promise to help, no matter what. This leads to the final confrontation.

Harmony Korine has really created a movie that captures the recklessness and impulsivity of youth. These girls get caught up in a lifestyle that, while highly dangerous, is highly addictive. It's only when getting shot or landing in prison, do these girls see the reality behind the glamour.

It is also edited in a really interesting way. There is never a scene that is presented in a standard way. The characters start talking, but are intercut with flashbacks or scenes yet to come. There all also shots throughout the movie of a beach party that none of the main characters ever attend and it has no bearing on the plot.

All the actors in this film are superb. James Franco is totally unrecognisable as Alien and I couldn't help feeling like there was a homage to the film Alien, with his metallic teeth. I didn't feel like I could make a connection to any of the girls, because there was nothing in the way of character development on their part.

I also felt like there were a lot of subtle references to Scarface, mainly in the behaviour of Alien, who acts like he's a big shot before his fall.

Verdict: An enjoyable movie to watch, but it left me feeling hollow inside after watching it. The style of editing may catch some people off guard.