Basquiat (1996)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Coxxie M

  
  To most people Basquiat was a man who painted and shit. To me, he was just some guy who went to college for a few weeks and learned that its fun to fuck up his current girlfriend's life by painting his important art on their not important purses, dresses, and even sometimes on a… More
  To most people Basquiat was a man who painted and shit. To me, he was just some guy who went to college for a few weeks and learned that its fun to fuck up his current girlfriend's life by painting his important art on their not important purses, dresses, and even sometimes on a canvas like other more typical artists tend to paint on. in conclusion, may basquait be remembered as the tolerable artist he was, as a man who was in a band with Vincent Gallo for six days, and a man with no respect for the countless banks, restaurants, and record stores that he loved to spraypaint his trademark "Fuck off, corporations!" message on as he "shot himself up" into fame's dirty veins.

• Anthony L

  
  Basquiat the movie has such a great cast telling the story of my favourite artist of all time. The best thing is that a lot of the actors knew Basquiat, Warhol and the other characters in real life, so you know you?re getting an authentic portrayal of real events! Brilliant!

• Bruce B

  
  Thi s Movie was about Jean Michel Basquiat who was a black artist who became friends with the famous Andy Warhol. Jean died at 27 from a herion overdose, this movie shows where he came from and the sucess he achived. Jean like Andy was way out there, but being way out there isn't… More
  Thi s Movie was about Jean Michel Basquiat who was a black artist who became friends with the famous Andy Warhol. Jean died at 27 from a herion overdose, this movie shows where he came from and the sucess he achived. Jean like Andy was way out there, but being way out there isn't bad, it's to bad more of us are not way out there. Most will not enjoy this movie, but I sure did. The music tracks were faboulus. Andy Warhol was played by David Bowie. Its a great movie give it a try.

• Lady D

  
  An oddly compelling tale of an Artist, I had no previous knowledge of. The main character was very likeable as and with quite a star cast, this film does have entertainment value. It is based on the true story of the Artist and watches the rise and fall of the man.

• Jennifer X

  
  Julian Schnabel is, like, REALLY cool, but he doesn't like linear stories, or something. I like his visual renderings of concepts like a lot a lot but nothing really happens in this movie. But the thing is, I wasn't bored either.

• Sanjaya &

  
  A weird directing style, a weak yet unimpressive story, plus watch it from the middle of the movie, make me rate this movie as the worst movie I've ever seen!!! Actor Jeffrey Wright maybe make a good debut, but for me he's not... Too much smoking scenes really disturbing… More
  A weird directing style, a weak yet unimpressive story, plus watch it from the middle of the movie, make me rate this movie as the worst movie I've ever seen!!! Actor Jeffrey Wright maybe make a good debut, but for me he's not... Too much smoking scenes really disturbing me... Really wonder why there's some A class actors want to played in this movie, like Christopher Walken, Benicio Del Toro, and Gary Oldman... Overall, just want to say this is really the worst movie I've ever seen...

• Alexander W

  
  Films to do with actors never really work simular to comic films, but hey its a good one.

• Michael G

  
  The supporting performances are the only reason to see this movie.

• Burger S

  
  Watch this for FREE, on THIS website, Flixster, yes! (Through Hulu) Let me give you 12 great reasons to see this film: 1. Benicio Del Toro 2. Gary Oldman 3. Willem Dafoe 4. Michael Wincott 5. Dennis Hopper 6. David Bowie 7. Sam Rockwell 8. Vincent Gallo 9. Courtney Love 10. Parker… More
  Watch this for FREE, on THIS website, Flixster, yes! (Through Hulu) Let me give you 12 great reasons to see this film: 1. Benicio Del Toro 2. Gary Oldman 3. Willem Dafoe 4. Michael Wincott 5. Dennis Hopper 6. David Bowie 7. Sam Rockwell 8. Vincent Gallo 9. Courtney Love 10. Parker Posey 11. Tatum O'Neal 12. Christopher Walken. I did not even recognize Jeffrey Wright, what a great job. Interesting character, inspired by an interesting guy, told in a creative style. Great Soundtrack too, lot's of Stones!

• Alec B

  
  Since director Julian Schnabel was part of the same art movement that Jean-Michel Basquiat was and actually knew him, he seems to be one of the few people who has the right to make a biopic about the infamous painter. The film at first glance seems unfocused, but I think the reason is… More
  Since director Julian Schnabel was part of the same art movement that Jean-Michel Basquiat was and actually knew him, he seems to be one of the few people who has the right to make a biopic about the infamous painter. The film at first glance seems unfocused, but I think the reason is to show how complicated a mind like Basquiat's views the world. The soundtrack is great and so are all the performances. The best is David Bowie's supporting role as Andy Warhol. I don't know if it's an accurate portrayal or not, but it is the most unique depiction of Warhol I have ever seen.

• Stephen E

  
  "Basquiat" is a film comprised of a great cast and great performances, but neither made me feel connected to the characters. Even when the film ended, I remained distant. I can't even recall much of what I watched. Now, I'm sure that the life of the celebrated… More
  "Basquiat" is a film comprised of a great cast and great performances, but neither made me feel connected to the characters. Even when the film ended, I remained distant. I can't even recall much of what I watched. Now, I'm sure that the life of the celebrated artist Jean Michel Basquiat was an interesting one; it just deserved to be made into a better film than this.

• Marcus W

  
  The work of an artist is always more interesting than the artist themself, hence why biopics like Amadeus and Dragon work really well. This is another good one, that keeps the artist at bay and lets his work speak for itself. It's an all-star cast, the pacing is great, and they… More
  The work of an artist is always more interesting than the artist themself, hence why biopics like Amadeus and Dragon work really well. This is another good one, that keeps the artist at bay and lets his work speak for itself. It's an all-star cast, the pacing is great, and they don't take the easy route of playing the race card. Good film.

• Ivan D

  
  It is a common practice in the film world to explore the lives of painters and artists, particularly those who lived and died by their art. Jean-Michel Basquiat is surely not an exception but rather a most definitive representation of it. He gives life and form to his countless… More
  It is a common practice in the film world to explore the lives of painters and artists, particularly those who lived and died by their art. Jean-Michel Basquiat is surely not an exception but rather a most definitive representation of it. He gives life and form to his countless statements through graffitis, shows his messily ecstatic but ultimately epochal visions through his paintings and evokes a new voice of artistic non-conformity by way of his creations. But then, to counter this searing passion prevalent among artists like Basquiat, the film, directed by Julian Schnabel both with an attention to content and a slight delve into the experimental, then puts all of these into a final salvo towards self-destruction. Jeffrey Wright, one of the more impressive character actors of our time, delivers an unrecognizable performance as the title role. For roles like these, stars always have this tendency to either unnecessarily steal scenes or bury the real people they're playing in the afterthought of their very own persona. This is not the case for Jeffrey Wright. As I may describe it, his performance 'took its own form, life and time'. His on-screen rendition of Jean-Michel Basquiat developed not through an obvious 'pen and paper'-bound emotional and psychological metamorphosis but through a more simple approach: Wright, as an actor, preferred not to merely play or portray Basquiat, but to embody him. Although he does not look like the late artist himself, Jeffrey Wright achieved to embrace the role not for the sake of showcasing some superficial acting prowess but to internally channel Basquiat as a human being. This unconscious but fruitful connection between Jeffrey Wright and Jean-Michel Basquiat was particularly enhanced by the fact that Julian Schnabel is also an artist/painter. Considering that the artistic connection is fairly established between Wright, the mythical Basquiat and Schnabel, the film, in effect, has been much more transcendental and relatively honest in its emotional backbone and at the same time, also purer in its artistic merit. The film's cast is great, with supporting roles by Gary Oldman, Dennis Hopper, a bit of Christopher Walken as his usual patented self playing an interviewer (this therefore completes an unofficial "True Romance" cast reunion), Benicio Del Toro as Basquiat's friend and Willem Dafoe as an electrician. David Bowie is wonderful to behold as Andy Warhol, whose facial resemblance with the enigmatic pop artist himself immensely helped in his portrayal and also added some authentic weight into his performance. Although there were scenes that were too dormant for their own good, the film is quietly successful in almost all levels, specifically on how it was able to lift itself into a higher form of human 'drama' without accidentally spelling it out with an additional 'melo'. "Basquiat", as a biopic, is quite unique in its position. The film does celebrate the short-lived life and genius of Jean-Michel Basquiat but does not overly glorify him. The film shows his bleak self-decline but does not fully capitalize in it to exaggeratedly highlight a drama that is more than the film can swallow. "Basquiat" is urgent in its neutrality as an observer. An observer of a man whose voice was deemed as coming from the gutters but whose art was deemed as a gift. With this middle ground stance, the film, with a great black and white look upon the short and bittersweet life of a "young black painter in a white art world", is an uncommon triumph.

• Juli R

  
  This is a good biopic. Basquiat's character reminds me of artists that I used to know. David Bowie is fantastic as Andy Warhol.

• MJS M

  
  I was interested in this movie solely because it was directed by Julian Schnabel, director of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. The movie is about Jean-Michel Basquiat, a 19 year old Haitian man who went from being a homeless graffiti artist on the streets of New York to being a… More
  I was interested in this movie solely because it was directed by Julian Schnabel, director of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. The movie is about Jean-Michel Basquiat, a 19 year old Haitian man who went from being a homeless graffiti artist on the streets of New York to being a world renowned abstract painter in a very short time span. This is clearly a very personal movie to Schnabel, who is himself a successful painter in the New York art scene, in fact he knew Basquiat personally. The film has a real murderer?s row of character actors in it: a young Jeffery Wright plays Basquiat, David Bowie plays Andy Warhol, and the film also features Gary Oldman, Dennis Hopper, Benicio del Toro, and Christopher Walken. I can?t say I really got much out of Basquiat?s art, although I began to understand it a little better as the movie progressed. I really like the way Schnabel filmed Basquiat while he was actually painting, and the movies soundtrack selections. Ultimately it is mostly a formulaic biopic, but it?s done with style and Jeffery Wright?s performance is worth watching.

• Alex F

  
  Very well acted (even if I don't like Jeffrey Wright) but very typical too.

• Leo L

  
  Fantastic!

Read all 17 featured audience ratings