Spring Breakers

Friday, October 2 - Saturday, October 3, 2026

“I usually choose staff picks that are personal favorites of mine, but I only watched this one once when it was originally released in 2013, and I was pretty ambivalent about it at the time. This might be a natural (or even intended) reaction to a film that both traffics in and satirizes the most garish and nihilistic parts of American culture, a mix of hedonism, bad taste and petty corruption that are epitomized in this film and in our national consciousness by the state of Florida — which also serves as a mecca for the eponymous spring breakers. Korine smartly (and controversially) cast Disney Channel icons Vanessa Hudgens and Selena Gomez to play against type, and James Franco is arguably at his best here playing the most Florida of all Florida Men ever put on the big screen. Cinematographer Benoît Debie (Enter the Void, Climax) renders it all in neon pinks, pool blues and Florida rays that shift rapidly from dreamy to nightmarish.

Despite my initial mixed feelings, I’ve started to feel this film scratching at my brain 13 years later. Perhaps it’s because video game violence, cheap pop aesthetics and reality TV bravado have now moved into the very center of power on this planet, and the people wielding that power treat the chaos they unleash with even less weight than the players in this film — something Korine seems to have seen coming a bit earlier than the rest of us. This mid-career entry from Korine is seldom revisited and hasn’t been embraced by younger cinephiles as much as his earlier work, despite (or perhaps because of) it being arguably his most approachable film. I think it’s time for a rewatch.”

Staff Pick by Christine Kecher, Business & Systems Manager

Screening as part of our series Staff Picks 2026

  • Year 2012
  • Running Time 94 minutes
  • Format DCP
  • Distributor A24
  • Director Harmony Korine
  • Cast James Franco, Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson, Rachel Korine, Gucci Mane
  • Accessibility Assistive Listening, T-Coil

IFC Center does not generally provide advisories about subject matter or potentially triggering content in films, as sensitivities vary from person to person. In addition to the synopses, trailers and other links on our website, further information about content and age-appropriateness for specific films can be found on Common Sense Media, IMDb and DoesTheDogDie.com as well as through general internet searches.