Okay, so this comes from a supporter of Harmony Korine, true and true, so if the reader believes this will inhibit my ability to answer truthfully, please stop reading now.
SPOILERS AHEAD.
“Spring Breakers,” to me, was primarily about what would most likely happen if the “wishes” of a spoiled, douchey, teenage/early adult demographic extended their stay in a place that ultimately thrives on impermanence. To live in a realm of greed, gluttony and buffoonery can only be legitimized in anticipation of a return to reality.
The story to me is a wake up call to a generation lost in a spiral of drug-fueled irrationality, disingenuous emotional spew with bouts of lying, cheating and unfortunately impressive attempts to exonerate any shred of responsibility.
Korine does what he does best by exposing the surreal realism of the American public. These brain-dead spring breakers are no different than the glue sniffing, cat killing inhabitants of Zeno, Ohio. They are characters to the most extreme potential and they perform the dance, rites of passage and mating rituals that any culture proudly reflects.
Now for the girls. The girls present an interesting cog in this well-oiled machine, as they appear to be reckless and dangerous, long before they meet the beach, breasts and bass lines of the opening credits. They also seem to fixate on the escapism that beach life will provide and the happiness that money will ultimately give them.
These girls are different, with the equally interesting addition of the pious partier, appropriately named “Faith.” Faith is our moral arrow within the story. When confronted with life beyond the allotted spring break of her peers, she breaks down, shows immediate concern with the lifestyle ahead and returns home in a panic.
And then there were three and if we remember correctly, these were the original “bad bitches” involved in financing the trip itself by robbing a local eatery. The two blondes in the back handle the dirty work inside, and the driver who claims importance as the “lookout.”
Our lookout is later wounded in the film and is sent home after feeling scared of the life presented even thus far. The two girls remaining were already violent and easily excited by the intrigue of life beyond the laws of man.
They even transcend the dangerous capacity of the James Franco character, Alien (pronounced A-Leen). We see this when the girls confront Franco within his own home, forcing him to perform fellatio on the weaponry he openly danced around just moments before.
Bottom line, I’m psyched that a Harmony Korine film was able to slip through the Hollywood filter just long enough for a feature film of his — with a star-studded cast — to be unleashed in strip malls across America. This film is basically a cartoon, a critique of wild youth and the act of rebellion performed during the ceremonious “Spring Break.”
This film is about the odd justification of humans regressing to primitive needs and wants at the expense of seemingly no one. And the best part about it is, most audience members won’t even know the film is about them. Those who come for the Skrillex and the promise of tits will be disappointed, and they should be.