Spring Breakers Shocks as a pretty good movie

No, you didn’t read that incorrectly. And no, you aren’t on the wrong blog. I did see Spring Breakers, by choice. And, I did like it.

Now that that’s off my chest, let me tell you why. Because, all of you know I absolutely cannot stand that James Franco has a successful acting career. I think he’s a ridiculously overestimated talent that actually might be Pineapple Expressing his way through life, and because he’s cute (sometimes), it’s worked out. Somehow.

Anyways, I do LOVE Selena Gomez though. And even though the only thing I’ve actually seen her in is Beastly, I do kinda dig Vanessa Hudgens too. They’re cute, they’re talented and now? They’ve managed to escape the Disney Channel enthused chastity to really do something for their acting resume.

Spring Breakers is the story of four college girls who are so desperate to get out of town on Spring Break to “see the world” that they rob a fast food store to pay their way down. In a simple explanation, this movie is the illustration of every parent’s worst nightmare. It’s a harmless wild hair that’s gotten severely tangled–so much so, that the only solution to cut it off completely. yikes.

So, doused in neon bikinis, oversized sunglasses and everything else from the 80’s refurbished in coolness, these naive chicks hit the party bus hard.

The first half of the film is surprisingly artful. I know, it’s so freaking hard to believe. But, the rhythm of the shaking booties, swirling smoke and spraying beer foam is set to such a hot new song and poised on a beautiful with a group of kiddos having the most fun of their lives is something to ponder. Harmony Korine, who is known for making some controversial shit grabs ahold of this idea that kids are living it up outside of their real lives, an idea that what happens on spring break doesn’t really count in real life, but secretly, that it doesn’t actually help prove who we are (were?).

Showing that off, the foursome’s drugged out, sexed up party gets busted and they land in the slammer where the dreams and the glam of what Spring Break means to them start to dwindle. That is until local gangster (I think the loosely technical term here is “wigger”) Alien bails them out and takes them under his roll bar. Alien is James Franco’s breakout role, if you ask me. He’s able to bring heart and soul to an otherwise heartless, soulless twenty-something out for drugs, thugs and tang. He’s got silver teeth, corn rows and the biggest pair of shorts you’ve ever seen. All topped off with a floral print button-up. Ahhh, beach life.

One by one, the girls wake up, realize who they are and what they should be doing. What’s to love, is that they don’t necessarily choose to be the person you’d think they would. Plus, the editing is moshed up to a remix-style chronology that simply embellishes the daze that spring break might as well be.

A couple thoughts I had after watching – 1, that I couldn’t believe that I was about to tell people I actually liked it. 2, that I actually thought Franco was well-cast. 3, that I’d like to put myself through more of Korine’s creations and 4, I want to go out and by the soundtrack so that  can ride around with my windows down and feel like I look like a gangster. Hudgens does make it look pretty badass.

Give this booty show a chance – I can bank on the fact that something not so easy to put your finger on will actually surprise you into liking it to. Let’s get wasted.