The Beach Bum

A typically (and predictably) idiosyncratic Harmony Korine picture, The Beach Bum follows Matthew McConaughey’s perpetually stoned central character as he encounters a whole host of off-kilter figures while attempting to publish his first book. Filmmaker Korine has infused The Beach Bum with a rambling, off-the-cuff sensibility that admittedly does hold a certain appeal, as the movie, which runs an appropriately brisk 95 minutes, boasts a somewhat familiar yet entirely striking performance by McConaughey that ultimately keeps things interesting from start to finish – with the eclectic roster of periphery players, which includes Isla Fisher, Jonah Hill, Martin Lawrence, and a scene-stealing Zac Efron, providing the proceedings with periodic jolts of energy. Korine’s decision to employ as episodic a structure as one could envision – the narrative essentially follows McConaughey’s Moondog as he progresses from one oddball encounter to the next – paves the way for an undeniably erratic midsection, to be sure, and there’s little doubt that The Beach Bum, in the grand scheme of things, misses almost as often as it hits. It’s nevertheless clear that Korine’s irresistibly lush approach to the material, coupled with McConaughey’s thoroughly ingratiating work here, ensures that the movie is, at the very least, never boring, which, given the somewhat disastrous nature of Korine’s early work, is probably the best one could ask from a seriously off-the-wall director.

**1/2 out of ****