I don't know folks, but watching this, I felt uneasy about what I was seeing and hearing.

Everytime I watch, read or hear anything about this project (since early last year), I immediately remember the 2011 stunt both Harmony Korine (the director of Spring Breakers) and James Franco (the star of Spring Breakers) pulled, which we wrote about, and which, as I recall, generated lots of discussion.

As a recap… in 2011, both Franco and indie-film enfant terrible Korine, teamed up to work on a project they called “a violent new art film” titled Rebel (photo above). The film, which was to premiere at the Venice Biennale that year, was to include a fight between actual L.A. street gangs, with the members being allowed to use real weapons and hurt one another. We previewed some of the content of the short, which included Notorious B.I.G. tracks, Tupac t- shirts, bikes, an empty parking lot, naked black women (evidence HERE), and who knows what else we didn't see.

I never did see the completed film, but I did see the WTF teaser trailer. The entire affair was lambasted on this site, and elsewhere.

I also recall Korine's 2010 short fashion film Act Da Fool, and which many felt was nothing more than an exploitation of young black girls from "the hood." We posted the film on the old S&A site as well, and it was met with much derision, understandably, although not only on this site.

And then, last year, this Spring Breakers project is announced, which sees Franco as a white cornrow-wearing, devious rapper with a mouth full of metal teeth, named Alien, with lines like, "Bikinis and big booties, y'all! That's what life is about;" and I'm wondering if this is just a continuation of what Korine started with Act Da Fool, and continued on with the short film Rebel, with Franco.

And oh, by the way, real-life rapper Gucci Mane, Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson, and Rachel Korine also star in what is being called a comedy crime drama.

Anyway, as I said, I don't really know what to make of this. Obviously, I haven't seen the film, and I'll wait until I do to offer some informed commentary. I just know that, given Korine's recent history as summarized above, and the content of the trailer, I felt a little uneasy watching it. I have no idea what to expect here… maybe it's one big farce.

But feel free to chime in if you'd like. 

Here's the trailer: