Harmony Korine wrote the screenplay for this, and the one thing I can say for him is that he knows how to make people feel like crap.
I'll admit that Ken Park had me glued to the screen. It's like watching a horror movie, you're disgusted but you can't turn it off because you have to know what awful things will happen next. And, much like a horror movie, it's pretty predictable (Oh no! Dad's home, put your clothes on!!). As in Korine's other post-Kids works, the characters come across as either pathetic or revolting, and sometimes both. They're generally unlikable, and while it's easy to feel sorry for them its hard to really care what happens because you never get over the feeling that the director is trying really hard to shock you. Hence the graphic sex, violence, statutory rape, child abuse, cruelty to animals, and drug/alcohol abuse. Seriously, this film depends so much on shock tactics that they should have just edited out all of the character development and just released a 90 minute film of teenagers having sex and engaging in various violent and criminal acts. Oh wait, that would be Kids, wouldn't it . . . in fact, just skip Ken Park and go watch Kids again.
I'll admit that Ken Park had me glued to the screen. It's like watching a horror movie, you're disgusted but you can't turn it off because you have to know what awful things will happen next. And, much like a horror movie, it's pretty predictable (Oh no! Dad's home, put your clothes on!!). As in Korine's other post-Kids works, the characters come across as either pathetic or revolting, and sometimes both. They're generally unlikable, and while it's easy to feel sorry for them its hard to really care what happens because you never get over the feeling that the director is trying really hard to shock you. Hence the graphic sex, violence, statutory rape, child abuse, cruelty to animals, and drug/alcohol abuse. Seriously, this film depends so much on shock tactics that they should have just edited out all of the character development and just released a 90 minute film of teenagers having sex and engaging in various violent and criminal acts. Oh wait, that would be Kids, wouldn't it . . . in fact, just skip Ken Park and go watch Kids again.