If you are a New York art world fanatic, you would probably enjoy this film, but if you care nothing about art or artists, forget it. It's more about Basquiat's drug and personality problems than anything else. He's so bombed out all the time, it's hard to understand how he accomplished as much work as he did. I'm sure Basquiat had a much richer and fuller life than you get from this film. This film won't make you like Basquiat as a person. He didn't come off as a sympathetic character. In almost every scene, he is strung out on drugs to the point, he's barely functioning. It gets to be a little much after awhile. The film did nothing to help me understand his art or help me to appreciate it more, or Warhol's art, who is an accessory to Baquiat in this film. The film is more about Basquiat's social life or lack thereof. I kept thinking throughout the film "Grow up already." The best thing about the film is that it shows how empty success can be. Basquiat chased success as am artist, but when he found it, he didn't find happiness just more emptiness. David Bowie is good as Warhol.
Review of Basquiat
