Spring Breakers Review

Justin and I saw Spring Breakers on March 23, 2013!! This was an insane movie balancing a look at moral decay in the youth of America today, intense scenes of violence and sexual promiscuity, and some comedy thrown in. This movie definitely reminds me a little bit of Requiem for a Dream mixed with Trainspotting in alot of ways. I thought it was a well done movie with an excellent cast. This movie had been getting alot of attention due to the controversial presentation of Vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez, and Ashley Benson. This movie definitely will erase the previous image you have of Gabrielle from High School Musical. The movie centers around the notion of four friends since grade school wanting some adventure on spring break. They are tired of the "boring dorm life" that college has. Harmony Korine took these four girls and created a chaotic environment to show how much he dislikes the way youth spends their midsemester breaks. Each of the girls has a bad side, but none more so than Hudgens and Benson. I thought it was really amazing to see how Hudgens did a complete 180 in this movie to portray Candy, while Benson turned the voltage up from her Hanna character on Pretty Little Liars for her role as Brit. The girls will do anything to get out of the dorm life and experience adventure. The other two girls are Faith and Cotty. Cotty is played by Korine's wife Rachel, while Selena Gomez did a very good job as a girl maintaining her churchgoing attitude (her name being Faith wasn't a coincidence). She put deeper meaning and understanding into where the Faith character was coming from. The girls (minus Faith) end up going on a mission for extra money to make sure they get to Florida for spring break. What ensues is a chaotic scenario where Candy and Brit end up robbing a restaurant with Cotty watching on from the car-great camera work. The girls end up in Florida amidst a cornucopia of parties, where things really spiral. They encounter a rapper/hustler/drug dealer named Alien played very well by James Franco. My favorite was Hudgen's role of Candy, because it was just so different than what you're used to as well as Gomez's Faith character. However, Franco stole alot of scenes with his over the top look and attitude. Of course, I knew right away that Candy and Brit would want in on this type of activity because they want out of their dull lives. Faith wants out of this before things get too out of hand. There was a phenomenal face to face scene with Gomez and Franco where Gomez did an excellent job displaying her character's dilemma with getting involved with Franco's business. The other three would stay on board. One scene I really liked was when Alien plays "Everytime" by Britney Spears showing us a montage of events where Candy, Brit, Cotty, and Alien raid houses for money, drugs, etc. They are decked out in these pink ski masks-it was a very colorful atmosphere, so it added even more. Alien and his best friend Archie are in a feud, where Alien wants to take him out for an issue between them. After getting shot, Cotty realizes what Faith did and wants to go home back to the "dull dorm life." Though Franco's dialogue can get played out in this, I still was always interested in whatever Candy and Brit were doing. The colors, camera work, and intensity of the final scene was really well done. Candy and Brit are the last two girls standing and finish Alien's mission to take out Archie. It was a really chaotic scene that definitely summed up the insanity and controversial message of the movie. The final scene reminded me so much of Scarface, and there are subtle hints throughout that the final scene will take place especially the way Hudgens and Benson are able to get the money in the first place. The cast, characters, directing, plot, and scenes that will propel this to cult status kept me into the movie. I have always liked Vanessa Hudgens-she was nuts in this movie, and she did a great job going outside of her comfort zone. Selena Gomez is very good in this movie, and I think she'll become an even better actress over the years. Ashley Benson was good in this as well, and I thought her and Hudgens had fantastic chemistry. Rachel Korine was alright, but I thought the other three did much better with their roles. There's also a fun cameo by Jeff Jarrett who I didn't know was in this movie. Overall, I would give this movie a 4/5. This movie will shock you, but it has alot of crazy things going on, and the cast is brilliant.