This movie is so goddamned frustrating.

There is a cast in this movie that makes the IMDB page look made up, practically -- the first three names that hit in the opening credits are David Bowie, Dennis Hopper and Gary Oldman. (And, seriously, Bowie as Andy Warhol is some of the most no-brainer casting ever.) You have people like Willem Dafoe and Parker Posey, actors like Christopher Walken and Benicio del Toro all popping up in this thing.

You have the entire (albeit tragically short) incredible life of the artistic Jean Michel Basquiat at your disposal, someone whose Wikipedia page alone is staggering when it comes to the wide net of connections it has and the diversity and influence of…

Maybe I need to pay more attention, but I feel like this didn't really tell me all that much about Basquiat's life? His (well, a) personality is present, and it has moments where it feels compelling, where you see a spark of someone you want to know more about. Those moments, though, never go further, and the parade of familiar faces and characters are little more than cameos that provide little context. I don't know what Basquiat was actually like, but it seems unlikely that he was so... devoid, disconnected, that his art and his life weren't somehow more strongly bound, that the experiences we see could not be somehow more connected to the art we see. The rare instances…

I read that director Julian Schnabel was not allowed to use original Basquiat art in the portrait he made in 1996 of his generation's companion. So, the director himself took up the brush. For the Basquiat copies signed by Schnabel almost as much was paid at auctions as for Schnabel's own work.

Schnabel's biopic starts in 1979. Jean-Michel Basquiat lives on the street. At night he sleeps in a cardboard box in Central Park, during the day he walks through Manhattan with a plastic bag in one hand and a spray can in his other hand, where he leaves short, cryptic texts everywhere. His life changes when he meets Andy Warhol (avid part by David Bowie, who put down an…

when someone decides to make a biopic you’d expect that choice to be motivated by feelings of sympathy or care about the film’s main subject, like a passion project. unfortunately that doesn’t seem to be the case with 1996 baquiat, a film whose title seems uncannily inappropriate since the painter it’s named after never feels like the protagonist.

the director and writer, julian schnabel, is also a painter from new york who was a contemporary of basquiat. this intersection between their lives could’ve given the film authenticity but it was blown out of proportion and was ultimately nocuous. the author is way too present and feels like he can alter the past as he pleases, making his opinions bleed through…

Mesmerizing, beautiful, strange, pure, honest. This movie captivated me from beginning to end and I truly fell in love with it. It told the story of Jean-Michel Basquiat the painter. It pulls you into his world, his life, so effortlessly. The characters come alive on screen and every scene is so pleasing to watch, because just like the focus of the film- it is a piece of art. 

All of the actors were outstanding, especially Jeffrey Wright. His performance was my favorite thing about the movie. Everything from his mannerisms to his smile were so charming that he shines in this film. The rest of the cast were perfect as well, with Bowie, Gary Oldman, Benicio, and even Christopher Walken…