Expectations were fairly low going in to see Harmony Korine’s Spring Breakers. Aside from my greedy eyes feasting on the sight of Selena Gomez prancing around in a bikini with her crime committing cohort, I left the theater with a visceral feeling reminiscent of acid’s comedown. In place of a linear narrative, in which the storyline progresses from point A to point B, Korine chose the route of montages to convey his message; in doing so, the viewer was meant to feel the aspirations of its college-aged subjects, followed by the nostalgia of getting old. 

Spring Breakers is smarter than it lets off. The film intentionally appears empty in its reflection of college youth chasing the dream of self-discovery through experimentation and adventure. Think Road Trip, Van Wilder, or Animal House, as Hollywood hallmarks of what the college experience should be like. Spring Breakers took the added step of portraying the dark side of college - the unnamed individuals trapped in the endless pursuit of fun, hence “spring break forever.”   

WhileSpring Breakers has been dismissed by many for promoting misogyny and bro-dom, it seems the sex appeal was used to highlight the vapidness of youth culture. Having done the whole college thing, I can attest to the sentiments conjured throughout Spring Breakers of “experiencing life to the fullest.” The pitfalls of youthful over-indulgence can be observed in Philip K. Dick's AScanner Darkly:flower children naively partaking in drugs for self-discovery, only to find mental disturbance in psychosis.

Too much of a good thing will surely turn sour. As always, it’s best to take the middle path.