5. Feminism: The F Word
It's a debate that barely has time to grow dust but had the director been female, would the film's near-constant display of naked breasts and hip-hop misogyny be considered not exploitative but empowering? Considering the sheer extent of female flesh on show, any woman seen wearing a bikini is positively overdressed. From the opening montage to the closing credits, the lustful camera transcends voyeurism, prompting the audience to shuffle uncomfortably in their seats. As much of the film resembles a music video, perhaps these scenes are taking the objectification of women to levels of overkill. Certainly our introduction to Brit and Candy sets the male-fantasist template; enduring a boring lecture, they draw a penis on a sheet of paper and mime fellatio. Clearly unfazed with exhibiting their own (and each other's) bodies, their friendship, and experience of college, is symbolised by one, long 'touchy-feel' sleepover. Much is made of the allure of Spring Break, as though a week-long orgy of sex, drink and drugs would be the answer to all of their problems. Of course, despite the fact that they have no problems, Spring Break
is the answer. The party scenes are nothing but a female version of
Project X (
Project XX ?) but when it tempts these young women into breaking the law, this is presented, albeit sarcastically, as a noble crusade. But no matter how committed they are, their crime is automatically rendered 'cutesy' by their neon pink bikinis and balaclavas. This uniform may become as iconic as, say, the clown masks of
The Dark Knight, the nun masks of
The Town or the 'presidents' of
Point Break, yet it poses the rather unique question: what are the weapons here? The girls' guns or their bodies? All we see of the heist is what Cotty, the getaway driver, can see as she brings the car into position. We hear screams as they smash their way through one door and exit, cash bags in hand, through the other. Nobody is killed (although the girls make the threat several times) and they drive away, laughing at the absurdity of having held up a restaurant with hammers and water pistols. Is it another strand of objectification that gives only one of our college quartet anything close to a personality? While Candy, Brit and Cotty are an interchangeable hydra of hedonism, it lies to Faith, as her name suggests, to be the moral compass. Her religion keeps her away from not only the restaurant hold-up (she is picked up after the event) but most of the film's more carnal scenes. This makes her more of a spectator than a participant; a point realised when the girls recall just how invigorating it was to steal away with thousands of dollars. This scene, overlong to the point of parody, is played out in a parking lot in the dead of night. Faith shares her friends' fun, if only to fit in, but her smile quickly fades once the girls repeat their threats and revel in their memories, their victims' fear. They re-enact the event, pointing imaginary guns at each other and screaming ''Do you want to die tonight?'' or ''Get on your f***ing knees!'' until they collapse in fits of laughter. This marks the first test of Faith; the second, and greater, comes once Alien has bailed the girls out of prison and she sees his persistent advances as his way of collecting repayment. Her friends try to persuade her to stay but, on a feeling that ''something bad will happen'' she takes the bus back home; not so much leaving Spring Break as being ejected from the garden of Eden.