**1/2 out of (****)- FRESH
Sporting its T&A as proud as a high school diploma, the scantily-clad beauties venture off to their neon-infused Candyland from Hell in the bombastic "Spring Breakers". If one were to just take a glance at the posters or the commercials for this movie, it would garner a lot of groans. Another teen sex romp? It's unfortunate this didn't draw in the movie it should've, because if you scoffed at what you thought Breakers was going to sell you, it did it's job. Because this isn't the movie your expecting. At all.
The movie opens with a typical Eurotrip-like crowd pleaser. Plethora of boobs, loud party music, visceral beach shots, etc. It's all there. Soon enough, when the scenes are darker (both figuratively and aesthetically), that's when you know you walked into the wrong movie. What I found interesting about Spring Breakers was actually its cinematography. It's like Putting Edge (a neon mini golf facility) splashed onto a movie. If ever your mind drifts from the movie, you still are awe-inspired by the visual aspect of the film.
What I liked about Breakers that few movies do right is how you actually feel like your on a ride. Most films try to emulate the experience, but it's stuck in that Hollywood gloss. Fortunately, Harmony Korine's art form drowns his movie out with a euphoric soundtrack, Enter the Void's the hell out of the movie, and gives our characters this odd, dream-like approach. And he takes it a notch further by building this obscene tone and atmosphere.
I also think that this movie is highly controversial. I applied the later party shots, depicting the true brutality of parties like this, the over-the-top level of nudity, the debauchery, etc. There's also a saucy pool threesome tossed in for good measure.
What might take you out of Korine's tour-de-force is the lack of story. For a movie with a striking tone, a precise direction, and a lot more going for it, a script is one it lacks. But with such an abstract movie like Breakers, a story isn't going to be your biggest issue.
My last complaint is how it's not too coherent. It's like Korine wants to enhance this level of madness/insanity you feel watching it by making a very off-the-wall pacing and throwing a lot of rough cuts at you. This leaves you perplexed in places where you really shouldn't feel that way.
Breakers is a mostly hit-and-miss affair, but I enjoyed it greatly. You'd think with a "6", I didn't care for it much, but it's a high one. When most films concentrate on a story or its characters, Breakers does something new. It concentrates on the tone/atmosphere and in the end, you're rewarded with a unique experience. It might also be one of the most well shot and interestingly directed films you're likely to see this year. Critics or fans may be divided, but I thought Spring Breakers was a good movie.
Sporting its T&A as proud as a high school diploma, the scantily-clad beauties venture off to their neon-infused Candyland from Hell in the bombastic "Spring Breakers". If one were to just take a glance at the posters or the commercials for this movie, it would garner a lot of groans. Another teen sex romp? It's unfortunate this didn't draw in the movie it should've, because if you scoffed at what you thought Breakers was going to sell you, it did it's job. Because this isn't the movie your expecting. At all.
The movie opens with a typical Eurotrip-like crowd pleaser. Plethora of boobs, loud party music, visceral beach shots, etc. It's all there. Soon enough, when the scenes are darker (both figuratively and aesthetically), that's when you know you walked into the wrong movie. What I found interesting about Spring Breakers was actually its cinematography. It's like Putting Edge (a neon mini golf facility) splashed onto a movie. If ever your mind drifts from the movie, you still are awe-inspired by the visual aspect of the film.
What I liked about Breakers that few movies do right is how you actually feel like your on a ride. Most films try to emulate the experience, but it's stuck in that Hollywood gloss. Fortunately, Harmony Korine's art form drowns his movie out with a euphoric soundtrack, Enter the Void's the hell out of the movie, and gives our characters this odd, dream-like approach. And he takes it a notch further by building this obscene tone and atmosphere.
I also think that this movie is highly controversial. I applied the later party shots, depicting the true brutality of parties like this, the over-the-top level of nudity, the debauchery, etc. There's also a saucy pool threesome tossed in for good measure.
What might take you out of Korine's tour-de-force is the lack of story. For a movie with a striking tone, a precise direction, and a lot more going for it, a script is one it lacks. But with such an abstract movie like Breakers, a story isn't going to be your biggest issue.
My last complaint is how it's not too coherent. It's like Korine wants to enhance this level of madness/insanity you feel watching it by making a very off-the-wall pacing and throwing a lot of rough cuts at you. This leaves you perplexed in places where you really shouldn't feel that way.
Breakers is a mostly hit-and-miss affair, but I enjoyed it greatly. You'd think with a "6", I didn't care for it much, but it's a high one. When most films concentrate on a story or its characters, Breakers does something new. It concentrates on the tone/atmosphere and in the end, you're rewarded with a unique experience. It might also be one of the most well shot and interestingly directed films you're likely to see this year. Critics or fans may be divided, but I thought Spring Breakers was a good movie.