Purple Rain

An overall score of 6.5 is generous, it's so bad. But I dare you not to carry on watching. Mesmerizing in it's nostalgic beauty yet, obviously, hugely flawed in every way you'd judge a film without a global popstar in the starring role. Think Labyrinth and Moonwalker, except this is much thinner on the story front and laughable as far as acting goes. But so addictive.

The main attraction is the music, of course. Purple Rain is an iconic album. It's one of those films that is so bad it's good, before that became a genre in itself. Prince was always his own man and it shows in how this film is put together but 6.5 on IMDb usually means a divisive film with huge merits in either acting, direction, story or soundtrack. This film only has the soundtrack....but you still need to watch.

When I first saw this video in the video store, I didn't know what to make of it, being from Prince and all. Being an adventurous soul, I rented it anyway. Good decision! From the very first synthesizer-soaked note of "Let's Go Crazy," this movie takes hold of your attention, and doesn't let go until the ending credits. All the music has that '80s new-wave synthesizer sound goin' for it, but hey, it's an '80s movie! Besides, Prince's songs have a timeless quality that cannot be ignored. Some people may have their opinions of the Purple One, and I understand, but as for me, I think he's awesome! The movie as a whole is cool, with great performances by Morris Day and the Time, Apollonia (Sex Shooter) 6, and of course, Prince and The Revolution. Check this one out on a rainy afternoon!

It's probably fair to say that as a movie, "Purple Rain" makes for a great album. The story is like a 1930's backstage musical brought up to date, the dialogue is cliché-ridden, while the acting looks as if it's everyone's first try-out (which it more or less is). What saves it is Prince's blockbusting soundtrack of great songs, most of which are played in full, which helpfully reduces the acting time for everyone. Elsewhere it's ridiculously sexist, the women in it variously getting thrown into a dumper like yesterday's trash, slapped about by the men and requiring to wear full pancake make-up at all times and of course appear half-naked most of the time.

Prince himself gets to run around on his motorbike a lot and of course perform his songs so he doesn't have to do much other than make big doe-eyes at key moments and speak his words one line at a time. Morris Day is better as his nattily-dressed rival (in music and for the girl), but underneath he's still a stereotypical chauvinist and Appollonia as the love interest gets to sing a little, cry a little and take off her clothes a lot.

What little humour there is, is forced and banal, none more so than an excruciatingly unfunny sub-Abbott and Costello "Who-dat" exchange between Day and his gopher over a password. In its favour though the presentation of all the songs is crisp and dynamic as you'd expect in the MTV age. Prince, naturally and even Day are fine musical performers, although Day's songs with his group The Time are noticeably inferior to Prince's group the Revolution's - you just don't buy the club-owner's ultimatum to "The Kid" to up his game or lose the gig because up until then his material and performances have been superb.

Which brings me to the music, which in Prince's case is absolutely brilliant throughout. Not for nothing did the soundtrack stay at the top of the US charts for a "Thriller"-challenging 24 weeks. Each song gets a different,imaginative, live-interpretation and the man himself is as we all know a sensational performer, dancer and lip-syncher too! As you'd expect there's a big climax, where the self-obsessed Kid reaches out by for once selflessly performing Wendy and Lisa's song (in reality his own), the title number, partly to expiate his pain over his family strife and also, naturally to win the girl, but the music is so good and the staging so strong that you believe it and all the 'happy ever after" boxes it ticks as it goes.

Which is pretty much the story of the film and it wouldn't be the first "musical" where the songs carried the movie, but there were rarely songs as good as these doing the job.

A much undervalued film that tells the story of a young musician caught in an ever-declining spiral of domestic violence.

At times difficult to watch, while Morris Day is portrayed as the misogynist, Prince as the knight on (motorcycle) steed, he is still called upon to twice beat a woman as part of the screenplay. That he can do this and still emerge as a flawed but vindicated hero is credit to the writing. Prince is so free of ego in this film that not only does he portray himself as a narcissistic megalomaniac who beats women, but his most famous song is fictionalised as being written by his father and Wendy & Lisa. Even further, two of his compositions - Computer Blue (admittedly the album's weakest track) and Darling Nikki - are shown as being songs that kill off an audience. Perhaps the only concession to the Princely ego is a card that lists the (slightly shorter than Prince) Apollonia as 5'6.

The nearly complete-amateur cast are mainly band members playing themselves (and reviewers who slate the actors on the terms that they've never appeared in other movies are completely missing the point), and do perfectly well under the direction. Morris Day gets most of the plaudits for his likable ham, though Jerome Benton must also get credit for bouncing off him well, particularly their stage act, which is hilarious. Day and Benton even go so far as to make an Abbott and Costello routine funny, which takes some doing.

Lastly, there's Prince. While I admit to bias, I do actually think he's a pretty good actor in terms of being able to portray a low-key version of himself. Acting ISN'T his profession, this was a film made for entertainment, so anyone pointing out that the guy in the lead role isn't Robert DeNiro and thinking they're making a point is sadly deluded. I don't want this review to be a derisory attack of other people's comments, but I've even this film slated as having a low budget and being darkly lit. How would a film about domestic violence be shot, then? With full overhead spotlights and a CGI dinosaur walking into frame?

The film acts almost as a perfect snapshot of the neon light and skinny tie era… until you remember that it was actually made in a world of curly perms and tinny synths, and this isn't some retro-recreation. Prince's best film with Oscar-winning music, it sees him at his zenith, and it's saddening to realise that, even though he would make some fine albums, he would never again capture this high.

Post-Script, July 2016: Seeing this film again, it was clear that I'd been watching it through Purple-tinted glasses. My original score was 7/10, which is ridiculously high. My revised score of 5/10 stands as generosity by itself. A genius on record, perhaps... but on film, definitely not.

Not terribly different from many of the 1930s-era "backstage musicals," Purple Rain sports a contrived plotline that sees Prince (in the film referred to only as The Kid) battling rival musician Morris Day for the affections of new-in-town beauty Apollonia and a shot at stardom through a secure spot on the bill at legendary Minneapolis club First Avenue. A secondary narrative thread concerns The Kid's violent home life and his attempts to protect his mother from his raging, abusive father. Anyone looking for nuance and subtlety won't find it in the acting or the direction, but Prince's stage presence is commanding, and the musical numbers are electrifying. The Academy Award winning song score (irrefutably one of the best rock albums of the 1980s) and Prince's enigmatic, magnetic personality are undoubtedly the chief components in Purple Rain's sturdy cult, but for viewers of the right age, the youthful angst, flip attitude, and bold sexuality of the film will prove to be irresistibly attractive.