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Spring Breakers: Harmony Korine
Friday 22nd March 2013 | Louise
If you don’t know who Harmony Korine is, I judge you, but I don’t blame you. Some of the best films of the 90s where directed and written by the man himself – see Kids for the real definition of this. Korine isn’t your everyday director; he is a highly experimental artist who creates strangely compelling and ultimately very disturbing independent films.
In a recent interview with i-D magazine Korine was quoted saying ‘I want people to feel like they’re on drugs when they watch my films’. It wouldn’t be too far from the truth either. His previous works Kids, Gummo and Trash Humpers are all wickedly gross and touching in a way that’s almost ineffable.
Just to get a feel of what I’m trying to say, watch this:
Now watch this:
Gummo vs Spring Breakers. Gummo is Korine’s 1998 masterpiece, a vulgar depiction of life for a group of teenagers living in the white trash area of Nashville, Tennessee. The film stars a young Chloe Sevigny and the relatively unknown actor Jacob Sewell. It cost little over 1m to make and is thought to be one of the most obscure films Korine has made. On completely the other end of the spectrum, Spring Breakers stars three Disney house hold names featuring Selena Gomez, Ashley Benson and Vanessa Hudgens. At first, I thought it was a conceptual prank, a joke that would lead up to the big reveal of the actual cast. But as the hype surrounding the film grew it became uncomfortably clear that this was who Korine had really chosen.
Understandably Korine purists are more than likely to be turned off with his choice of casting, as with all his other films the main parts have been given to a list of lesser known indie actors and actresses. However critics have called Spring Breakers ‘his most vulgar film yet’ and with additional casting of James Franco, whose character is said to be influenced by rapper Riff Raff, as a Southern sleazebag Alien - it’s hard to say Spring Breakers doesn’t look at least a little appealing.
The film is an oily, bikini clad, booze fest centred on the lives of a group of girls (Gomez, Benson, Hudgens) who’re growing increasingly bored with their straight laced lives. A tale of paradise lost that descends deep into the heart of darkness; the girls decide to rob a restaurant in order to truly live out their wildest Spring Break fantasies. However the scheme doesn’t go quite as planned and suddenly they find themselves immersed in the seedy world of Alien (Franco), a dangerous hustling gangster.
Set to be one of Korine’s best films since Kids, this is worth a watch just for the complexity of Franco’s character alone. As for those worried that HK will sell out, isn’t it time he gets the big break he deserves? Korine has grafted for the past 20 years to make independent films that cater for a very niche audience and he has become the King of doing so, but even dedicated artists need their moment to shine and I firmly believe Spring Breakers might just be it.
Words by Louise Brisbane
@lubrisbane
