The Beach Bum Review

“I’m a bottom feeder. I go low to get high,” is a line that is said very early on in Harmony Korines newest film The Beach Bum. This not only seems to be the mantra of the main protagonist, but for the man who wrote and directed the film as well. Though instead of getting higher, Korine seems to aim low and get lower, resulting in an uninspired and abysmal film that is completely devoid of humour and plot.

The Beach Bum is Korines first movie since his 2012 effort, Spring Breakers, a film that was all surface and no story, hoping that its casting choices and cinematography would be enough to distract its viewers from the films complete lack of narrative. The Beach Bum takes everything about Spring Breakers and does it even worse. Korines newest movie is a failure in nearly every way, an uninteresting and aimless adventure packed with insufferable characters.

The film follows Moondog, a shallow and hedonistic poet living around the Florida Keys. Many critics believe that his best writing is behind him, but this doesn’t stop Moondog from procrastinating on his newest book, partaking in drug fueled escapades that are funded by his wealthy wife, Minnie. However, when Minnie unexpectedly dies, her will presents Moondog with an ultimatum: he has one year to finish his new book or else he gets none of her money.

It’s not long into the film that you realize how hollow Korines script is. Moondog stumbles through a series of vignettes that completely lacks structure, with every action missing any consequence or punchline. Korines characters are equally as flawed, as he expects the viewer to be sympathetic over the group of privileged morons that he has decided to focus on. However, he achieves nothing to make them likable. Moondog is perceived by everyone around him as a genius, but Korine does nothing to convince his audience of the same thing. Moondog shows no growth throughout the film’s runtime, merely interacting with mindless enablers before staggering off to do the next despicable thing.

With the exception of Matthew McConaughey, who is pretty much playing himself during a midlife crisis, the acting is poor. No one stands out more in this respect than Jonah Hill, who gives a performance so bad that it makes one think that the only reason he’s there is because he lost a bet.

The Beach Bums only strength is its aesthetic. Heidi Biven’s flamboyant costume design partners beautifully with Benoît Debies vibrant cinematography. Unfortunately, it’s Korines creative direction that takes away from it all. Sloppy editing and out-of-focus shots constantly plague these positives, leaving a film that is incoherent in more ways than one.

Nonetheless, The Beach Bum manages to achieve nothing worth while. Korines attempt to create a colourful character driven comedy is a disjointed mess that leaves much to be desired.

The Beach Bum is a completely uninspired disaster.

Produced By: Anonymous Content
Runtime: 135 minutes
Rating: R