The Beach Bum is almost upon us. A new trailer has dropped, and it features Matthew McConaughey as Moondog, a perpetually high poet, who has the sort of bedraggled 70s style Justin Bieber has adopted as of late. With some long blonde hair, the bad moustache, and the wild prints, he has an insatiable lust for life as he announces: “Life’s a fuckin’ rodeo. I’m gonna suck the nectar out of it and fuck it raw dog ‘til the wheels come off.”
Unfortunately Bieber is not a part of the ensemble, but the one minute trailer shows that Moondog’s circle includes Snoop Dogg (of course), Zac Efron, Isla Fisher, and Martin Lawrence. Directed by Spring Breakers filmmaker Harmony Korine, it packs in some mad party shots too, and lots of weed.
The Slash Report had an from a test screening spill all: “It’s a candy-coloured explosion fused together by a crackling jukebox soundtrack featuring the likes of Jimmy Buffet (who also appears in the film as a friend to Snoop Dogg’s character) and The Cure.”
They continued: “The hectic camera blissfully swarms the A-list ensemble as they deliver the wackiest performances of their entire careers. Zac Efron has a scene-stealing cameo as a demonic and troublemaking rehab patient. Jonah Hill boisterously goes over the top with a thick southern Cajun accent. Martin Lawrence is a sailboat captain obsessed with dolphins. Isla Fisher is the feisty and overwhelmingly wealthy wife to the titular beach bum. Isla Fisher’s relationship with McConaughey’s Moondog includes him sticking a joint between her toes and smoking it. But of course, this brings us to Moondog himself. McConaughey was born to play this role of a slurring, beer-guzzling, free-spirited poet.”
When we spoke to Korine last year, he described it as “super swampy, boozy film about fuck-ups” and judging by the new trailer, that’s pretty spot on. “It’s what I consider to be my first full comedy.”
The film is due to be released in 2019, but you can watch the trailer below.