Wild Style is the 1983 film directed by Charlie Ahearn that presents a landmark fictional story about early New York hip hop.
The film follows the graffiti artist Ray, played by Lee Quiñones, and places him within a world of DJs, MCs, breakdancers, graffiti writers, and neighborhood parties. Rather than treating hip hop as a backdrop, Wild Style features major participants from the culture, including Grandmaster Flash, the Cold Crush Brothers, and Rock Steady Crew.
Its soundtrack and performance scenes helped document the connections among the four commonly cited elements of early hip hop: DJing, MCing, breakdancing, and graffiti. The film was shot in New York and became an important international introduction to the culture.
Wild Style is sometimes mixed up with Beat Street, another influential hip-hop film released in 1984. Wild Style came first and is especially associated with the early downtown and Bronx scenes.