Beat Street

PG

Released Jun 8, 1984

1 hr. 45 min.

Musical

List

57%

7 Reviews

Tomatometer

83%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

At the forefront of early hip-hop culture, DJ Kenny Kirkland (Guy Davis), his B-boy brother, Lee (Robert Taylor), and graffiti artist Ramon (John Chardiet) all have hopes of showcasing their talents outside the confines of South Bronx, N.Y. When Tracy Carlson (Rae Dawn Chong), a composer and choreographer, runs into Kirkland and Lee at one of Manhattan's hottest nightclubs, she offers Lee an opportunity to perform on TV. However, the crew has a long way to go before achieving their dreams.

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Audience Member

Awesome and inspiring movie. Showing the the life in the Bronx of the 80's and how hip hop culture growed. This movie has a significant impact on many peoples life. This is one of the best documented parts of hip hop history.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/18/23

Full Review

uncle p

Story/Screenplay: (1/5) Badly dated, unoriginal, and uninteresting. Duration/Tempo: (2.5/5) At 1 hour and 45 minutes, it's an average length movie that felt long. Cast & Crew: (1/5) Rae Dawn Chong delivered the only performance of interest. Summary: (1.5/5) The story and cast failed, and the film felt a little long. A strong thumbs down.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

This movie's only redeeming qualities are Rae Dawn Chong's performance and the historicism of the dancing sequences. This plotless, trudging film makes one scratch their head at who greenlit it. Fun only for ironic reasons.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/28/23

Full Review

Audience Member

It's good social intentions aside, there's more character to the graffiti and the outfits than there is to any of the actors' performances or, you know, actual characters, so that whenever the music comes to a stop, so does the movie and any narrative interest the viewer might have—fortunately, then, the music almost never stops (though it does get repetitive). Oh, and to be clear, Spit is the more subversive and authentic graffiti artist. Don't @ me. #TeamSpit

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

The Hip Hop movie bible...

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/18/23

Full Review

delysid d

Classic hip hop movie.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

04/26/17

Full Review

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Stan Lathan

Director

Rae Dawn Chong

Tracy

Guy Davis

Kenny

John Chardiet

Ramon

Leon W. Grant

Chollie

Saundra Santiago

Carmen

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Beat Street: Official Clip - Painting a Virgin Train

2:06

Beat Street: Official Clip - Tagging the Train Station

1:30

Beat Street: Official Clip - The Bronx Rockers vs. Beat Street

4:21

Beat Street: Official Clip - Melle Mel and the Furious Five

2:07

Beat Street: Official Clip - You're a Biter

2:10

Beat Street: Official Clip - Believe

2:01

Beat Street: Official Clip - Us Girls Can Boogie, Too

2:17

Beat Street: Official Clip - The Santa Claus Rap

3:20

Beat Street: Official Clip - Caught By the Cops

1:45

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Diego Galán

El Pais (Spain)

A musical and vibrant film, with the capacity for spectacle. [Full Review in Spanish]

Feb 20, 2020

Full Review

Felix Vasquez Jr.

Cinema Crazed

Holds up pretty well as one of the few hip hop musicals and a neat time capsule when hip hop was growing and still on the fringes of the mainstream.

Feb 27, 2016

Full Review

Glenn Dunks

Trespass

Like the best films of its kind, Beat Street isn't simply a glorified music video, but rather a celebration of the bond between artists and an examination of a culture that goes unappreciated and misrepresented.

Sep 8, 2013

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 2/5

Aug 30, 2005

Full Review

Philip Martin

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Rated: 1/5

Dec 26, 2004

Full Review

Daniel M. Kimmel

Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Rated: 2/5

Feb 8, 2004

Full Review

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Synopsis

At the forefront of early hip-hop culture, DJ Kenny Kirkland (Guy Davis), his B-boy brother, Lee (Robert Taylor), and graffiti artist Ramon (John Chardiet) all have hopes of showcasing their talents outside the confines of South Bronx, N.Y. When Tracy Carlson (Rae Dawn Chong), a composer and choreographer, runs into Kirkland and Lee at one of Manhattan's hottest nightclubs, she offers Lee an opportunity to perform on TV. However, the crew has a long way to go before achieving their dreams.

Director: Stan Lathan
Screenwriter: Andrew Davis, David Gilbert, Paul Golding, Steven Hager
Distributor: Orion Pictures, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Vestron Video
Production Co: Orion Pictures
Rating: PG
Genre: Musical
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 8, 1984, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 15, 2017
Sound Mix: Dolby, Surround

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