As the newest addition to their admirable DVD collection Arthouse Films, which showcases serious documentaries that are based around the art world, New Video Group has released Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child. Directed by Tamra Davis it’s an exploration of the life and times of the man who brought graffiti art to the mainstream art world and then, all too appropriately, ODed on heroin at the age of 27. Davis revolves her film around an interview she did with him two years before his death, and although there are no true revelations to be found therein it is still a haunting privilege to see any new Basquiat footage and that alone is almost enough to justify watching the otherwise underwhelming movie. Everything else here is a rather clinical look back at his rise to fame as he bounced from comfortable middle class kid to struggling homeless enigma then finally to ultra wealthy celebrity. Most of this material will be familiar to anybody who saw Basquiat, the 1996 dramatization of his life. The difference being that Davis knows her audience is probably primarily comprised of art nerds and so much more time is spent on his actual work which leaves little time for the more cinematic tumult that accompanied his love life.
The best thing going on here is the way Davis is more than ready to dive headlong into intellectual debates about the man and also highlight some of the more obscure episodes from his life. It was news to me that back in 1985 Andy Warhol and Basquiat held a dual show at the Shafrazi Gallery in New York that was eviscerated by critics far and wide. Racism is also an always urgent topic and here Davis refuses to shy away from it showing the role in played in his work and his life. At times her conclusions are a bit iffy and feel strained such as when she equates the brutal police murder of an African American artist to an interviewer asking Basquiat if his art was “primal” (thus automatically implying that he is a primate). There was also the shaky relationship Basquiat had with money. It’s probably to be expected considering the extreme rollercoaster ride his finances went on during his short life, however it still smarts a little to watch the millionaire version of the artist taking pot shots at the so-called “mercenaries” who were only using the art world to get rich quick.
Without actually tracking down and attending a museum exhibit on Basquiat this film provides the best opportunity to become intimate with his work. It also comes with some insightful contextualization. Here the talking heads speak of the way that his style, neo-expressionism, was a push back against the obnoxious minimalism that came directly before it (Google “White on White”). That argument, and many of the other ones found here, made a lot of sense to me and opened my eyes to new theories being tossed around out there. I also, unfortunately, found myself debating whether or not his work was infantile or profound, and whether the hubbub that surrounded it was just some sort of self-congratulatory celebration of mediocrity. At one point an art critic states that he was always “channeling his inner child” but does not go on to explain how, exactly, we can differentiate that from someone who is just succumbing to their inner child. In an interesting strategy, at least from a filmic perspective, Davis went ahead and cast herself as an interviewee. I assume that was done is place of her providing narration throughout , and since her topics of conversation are relevant enough and she steers clear of self-promotion I’ll admit that in this case it was the right move.
Basquiat: The Radiant Child is neither the priciest nor the most ambitious documentary ever; it does what it has to do to get by and not much else. Think of it as the bookish, more responsible brother of Basquiat. You’ll find a lot more facts that feelings here, though when it comes to feelings there is a strong case to be made that this is, at core, a love letter. For example, time is spent on the heroin addiction which ultimately cost him his life though apparently Davis could not find so much as an acquaintance who would speak ill of the drug or its impact on his life. Instead it is just viewed as Basquiat doing what Basquiat had to to adapt to fame and fortune. The art critics are also uniform in their voice as Davis chose only to give screen time to those who wanted to breathlessly laud his word. It’s all understandable considering the history she shared with the artist, but we must remember that Julian Schnabel, director of Basquiat, was also a personal friend. Certainly there is a filmmaker out there who can provide us with a somewhat less biased version of the guy.
The film is presented in widescreen format. Most of it is in color those there are bits and pieces that are in Black and White. The audio runs the gamut from excellent to horrible as some interviews are so muffled that you cannot even hear them which is made worse by the fact that this disc does not have subtitles available. However, the questionable audio seems to be a product of the filmmakers and not the DVD distributors.
The special features are fairly limited as all that is made available is the theatrical trailer and the original 1986 interview with Basquiat conducted by Tamra Davis that is used as a centerpiece of the movie. As mentioned above there is nothing Earth shattering to be found there but it is probably the #1 reason to purchase this DVD if only for historical purposes.
The story of Basquiat is one of the most fascinating to come out of the art world in the past century so anytime somebody new wants to take a crack at it it is worth a look. That said, the experience suffers due to a lethargy that hangs over it and because at times the portrait being painted is so rosy that one can’t help but feel as though they are being sold a bill of goods. More for fans of Basquiat than for fans of documentaries.
Arthouse Films presents Jean-Michel Basquiat. Directed by: Tamra Davis. Starring: Julian Schnabel, Larry Gagosian, Bruno Bischofberger, Tony Shafrazi. Running time: 93 Minutes. Rating: NR. Released on DVD: November 9, 2010.
