Wild Style

If you think you are a true Hip Hop fan and when I talk about Wild Style and you are asking me "What?", then something must be wrong...

Wild Style is the first and true Hip Hop documentary/film about a culture that remained one of the strongest of the past few decades. Never has there been an artform of music that was just basically made of other music styles, but has managed to grow and evolve on its own.

If you want to understand the basic elements of Hip Hop (Rappin', DJin', Breakdancin' & Grafitti) then don't look any further, here's what you need.

As one of the top titles wanted on my "Please-Release-It-On-DVD-List", this movie is not a movie in its real form. Because it was pretty much lowbudget, it has a feel of documentary, but it certainly has a story. Not very much, but the knowledge that almost everyone of the cast was/is someone in the Hip Hop Community 1982, makes this title very interesting to see what they contribute to this movie, and Hip Hop in general.

You've probably read the plot outlines in other reviews, so I won't tell you anything you've already read in those reviews. All I can say is, if you wanna know what the TRUE meaning is of Hip Hop, instead of the BLING-BLING type o' Hip Hop which is totally (well, almost totally) commercialised, see if you can get a copy of this movie and "take a trip down memory lane", like my man Nas said in his 1994 DJ Premier produced cut "Memory Lane (Sitting In Da Park)", another Hip Hop Gem..

RECOMMENDED!!

If you want a movie with a plot and a story, this isn't for you. If you want to see the founding fathers of a musical movement which changed the world, this is it. It's the real deal - the artists play themselves, and there are extensive breaks showing all that was wonderful about rap, graffiti and break-dancing in NYC in the early 80's. I was lucky enough to live there at the time, and I will never forget the amazement of seeing full-painted subway cars, and hearing the unique beats of Red Alert and his kind on Kiss and WBLS. This movie captures a wonderful moment in time.It was the best of times, it was ... the best of times. I have no idea where all these people are now, but if you ever read this - thanks - you changed my life.

No true hip-hop head should go without seeing this movie. It is the first and probably the most accurate representation of the early hip-hop scene. IMDB has categorized Wild Style under the genre of documentary. Although the movie has a documentary feel with footage of hip-hop heads in action, it is not a true documentary because it contains a plot line which was scripted.

The plot revolves around the character of Raymond, who is played by the legendary graf artist Lee Quinones. We see what happens to him as his art starts to receive recognition from wealthy art connoisseurs. He has many personal struggles as he deals with this new attention. But it seems that all of his problems are resolved when he is painting a mural for a large hip hop concert and realizes that his art shouldn't always be about him.

There is plenty of footage that represents all four elements of hip hop: the MC, the DJ, the graf artist, and the B-boy. The Double Trouble scene and the basketball rapping scene were recently remade in Sprite commercials (Nas, Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, etc.) to appeal to the hip hop crowd. We also see Lee Quinones in action in several scenes as well as footage of Grandmaster Flash. My personal favorite is the footage of a young Rocksteady Crew (Crazy Legs, Prince Ken Swift, Mr. Freeze, Frosty Freeze, etc. I think they're about 14-15?) performing at the concert at the end of the movie. And there are many other memorable scenes.

Although Wild Style is not a true documentary, I think it has preserved the true essence of hip hop during that time for younger people (such as myself) to experience. Truly a must see and a classic.

Legendary New York graffiti artist Lee Quinones plays the part of Zoro, the city's hottest and most elusive graffiti writer. The actual story of the movie concerns the tension between Zoro's passion for his art and his personal life, particularly his strained relationship with fellow artist Rose.

Director Charlie Ahearn was approached by graffiti artist Fred Braithwaite, later known as Fab 5 Freddy, who wanted to make a film about hip-hop (as a broad culture encompassing emceeing, DJing, graffiti and break-dancing) and graffiti as an art form. Braithwaite was an acquaintance of Lee Quiñones, whom Ahearn had long-wanted to film and whose murals he has always admired. Braithwaite brought Quiñones in to meet Ahearn and the three began discussions about creating a hip-hop movie.

As a film, this movie is pretty lacking -- the plot is weak, and the acting is completely awful. But that was never the point. With most of the characters ad libbing their lines and actually being real life hip hop and graffiti artists, this almost serves as a pseudo-documentary. Probably no other film better captures the rise of hip hop than "Wild Style".

As much a document of primordial hip-hop culture as it was an arbiter of what hip-hop would become(for a time), this film perfectly encapsulates the earthshaking inventiveness and fun of hip-hop and, upon this viewing, reminds me of how much of that loose, experimental spirit is missing in the current scene. The flimsy story(carried, as it were, by the singularly inarticulate graffiti legend "Lee" Quinones) is aptly subordinate to the raw, bouncy hip-hop soundtrack(provided by Blondie's Chris Stein and the ever-smooth Fab 5 Freddy, who folks of a certain musical disposition might remember from Yo! MTV Raps and who also co-stars). A must not just for hiphop heads but also for anyone striving to understand why this "fad" caught on like it did. 10/10