Never Mind Pop Film

It is tradition in Hollywood to take out glossy, half-page ads in Variety and other trade papers to garner awards buzz. Actors and actresses are asked to be gracious and humble during that process, James Franco has other ideas.

To promote Franco's performances as Alien in Harmony Korine's Spring Breakers, A24 has put out a banner emblazoned with "CONSIDER THIS SH*T" in bold neon pink as Mr. Franco holds Oscar statues in eachhand. An A24 spokesperson said of the ad, "James Franco has created a character so indelible it deserves recognition. We are excited to be able to support it with a campaign and know the impact of Allen will last far past this awards season."

When prompted about the colorful language, the spokesperson responded, "We plan to create an awards campaign that is thematically consistent with the film itself."

Bold move, Franco. We'll see how the awards blogosphere responds.

Harmony Korine isn't well known to the audiences that will potentially be watching Spring Breakers this weekend, the man best known for weird romps into fringe societies (Gummo and Trash Humpers) represents independent filmmaking at its most obscure. That's what makes all the television spots for his latest effort all the more confounding.

The glitzy trailer and Skrillex music may suggest a film that celebrates the mass of partying that is spring break, but if Mr. Korine and James Franco are to be believed, this is sly satire masquerading as the type of visceral thrill that fratboys love. Any hopes that the satire will puncture through the membrane is entirely dependent on the effort of the audience member.

Faith (Selena Gomez), Candy (Vanessa Hudgens), Brittany (Ashley Benson) and Cotty (Rachel Korine) are all life-long friends who live together in a boring college dorm and are looking for a blast this spring break. Awesome vacations don't come cheap though, they are a f…