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Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child

Country: USA, Language: English, 88 mins

  • Director: Tamra Davis
  • Producer: Lilly Bright; Stanley F. Buchthal

CGiii Comment

The price for fame is...$14.5 million - only with premature death.
 
This film was made by Basquiat's friend - it's an admirable portrait of a friend by a friend...there is no tawdriness and very little truth...
 
The gallery owners, the art dealers all proclaim every piece to be a masterpiece...well, they have to look after their investments - pity they didn't look after the source of their investments.
 
Amid all the ass-licking...there is one dissenting voice who states that Basquiat's contribution to art is miniscule...looking at his paintings, you would tend to agree.
 
The emperor's new clothes are composed of scribbles...
 
His sexuality is never mentioned - apart from the heterosexual flings...his prostitution is expertly side-stepped with a lie...
 
The is really is the modern day equivalent of Icarus - he flew very high, very briefly and fell to  the ground with an almighty thump, died and his scribbles became a valuable commodity.

Death works in mysterious ways.


Trailer...

The(ir) Blurb...

Director Tamra Davis pays homage to her friend in this definitive documentary but also delves into Basquiat as an iconoclast. His dense, bebop-influenced neoexpressionist work emerged while minimalist, conceptual art was the fad; as a successful black artist, he was constantly confronted by racism and misconceptions. Much can be gleaned from insider interviews and archival footage, but it is Basquiat's own words and work that powerfully convey the mystique and allure of both the artist and the man.

Cast & Characters

Jean Michel Basquiat as Himself