Basquiat (1996)

Basquiat tells the story of the meteoric rise of youthful artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. Starting out as a street artist, living in Thompkins Square Park in a cardboard box, Jean-Michel is "... See full summary »

Director:

Julian Schnabel

Writers:

Lech Majewski (story), John Bowe (short story),

Stars:

Jeffrey Wright, Michael Wincott, Benicio Del Toro

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jeffrey Wright	...	Jean Michel Basquiat
Michael Wincott	...	Rene Ricard
Benicio Del Toro	...	Benny Dalmau
Claire Forlani	...	Gina Cardinale
David Bowie	...	Andy Warhol
Dennis Hopper	...	Bruno Bischofberger
Gary Oldman	...	Albert Milo
Christopher Walken	...	The Interviewer
Willem Dafoe	...	The Electrician
Jean-Claude La Marre	...	Shenge (as Jean Claude LaMarre)
Parker Posey	...	Mary Boone
Elina Löwensohn	...	Annina Nosei
Paul Bartel	...	Henry Geldzahler
Courtney Love	...	Big Pink
Tatum O'Neal	...	Cynthia Kruger

Storyline

Basquiat tells the story of the meteoric rise of youthful artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. Starting out as a street artist, living in Thompkins Square Park in a cardboard box, Jean-Michel is "discovered" by Andy Warhol's art world and becomes a star. But success has a high price, and Basquiat pays with friendship, love, and eventually, his life.

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Plot Keywords:

artist | friendship | street artist | art | andy warhol | 

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Taglines:

In 1981, A Nineteen-Year-Old Unknown Graffiti Writer Took The New York Art World By Storm. The Rest Is Art History.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for drug use and strong language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

9 August 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Build a Fort, Set It on Fire

Filming Locations:

Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,300,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

ITL 96,783,000 (Italy) (9 May 1997)

Gross:

ITL 780,048,000 (Italy) (6 June 1997)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Eleventh Street Production, Jon Kilik, Miramax Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

David Bowie and Gary Oldman have both played Pontius Pilate. Bowie played the role in The Last Temptation of Christ, and Oldman played him in Jesus.

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Goofs

When Basquait gives Rene the "mostly brown coloured" painting he asks Rene the time and then writes down 'RENE5:11' on the painting. This addition to the painting keeps appearing and disappearing.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Rene: Everybody wants to get on the Van Gogh boat. There's no trip so horrible that someone won't take it. The idea of the unrecognized genius slaving away in a garot is deliciously foolish one. We must credit the life of Vincent Van Gogh for really sending this myth into orbit. I mean, how many pictures did he sell, one? He couldn't give them away. He has to be the most modern artist, but everybody hated him. He was so ashamed of his life that the rest of our history will be ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

At the very end of the credits, a short clip showing a surfer riding on a wave is displayed. It's very similar to the surfing/wave shots that Basquiat keeps seeing whenever he looks up to the sky during the movie, but it's in full color instead of being blue-tinted.

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Connections

Features Metropolis (1927)

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Soundtracks

"Summer in Siam"
Performed by The Pogues
Written by Shane MacGowan
Published by Perfect Songs/MacGowan Music/SPZ Music, Inc.
Courtesy of Warner Music UK Ltd.
By Arrangement with Warner Special Products

User Reviews

Basquiat - an inspiration.

I thoroughly enjoyed the movie 'Basquiat'. It is a subtle portrayal of a complex character, beautifully acted by Jeffrey Wright. It would have been easy for the film-makers to go over board with this movie. Basquiat sure did have the character to allow that. And the fact they didn't feel the need to do that, is why I like this movie so much. It'd been easy to concentrate more on the drug taking, on his immense paranoia, and on his lively lifestyle that went beyond Andy Warhol and Madonna. And doing that would have probably got the movie more hype, attention and plaudits. Instead the makers of this movie just give glimpses of his life and merely suggest a whole lot more, and this works well. It's a movie that goes along more at a stroll than a run, and grows in stature and depth as it does so.

But, the 'problem' if you can call it that, with 'Basquiat' is that you need to know this man's art, and this man's character to really enjoy and appreciate this movie. And that's why I think it maybe doesn't get the sympathetic reviews or attention it deserves. If you didn't know about this man's life before seeing the movie, then I don't know what you could take from the film. And if you watch it without knowing about him and his art, then I can imagine it wouldn't really hit the mark.

What makes this movie beautiful in it's subtlety is that it does great justice to the wonderful talent and nature of Jean Michel Basquiat. And if you love his art, then do watch this movie, it's well worth it.

9/10