One of the fun things about doing this blind spot series is it forces me to sit down and watch movies I’ve heard about but just have never gotten around to seeing. 1984’s Purple Rain is such a film. Of course I know about its existence as one of the iconic rock feature films, and I knew about Prince’s music, but I had never seen the movie. Now I have seen the film and I can see why it was such a touchstone for both 80s music and music in film.
There isn’t a ton of plot to Purple Rain but what they do have is interwoven nicely into the music. The story is about a singer named The Kid played by Prince who comes from a troubled and abusive home and he is trying to make a name for himself playing at a club called The First Avenue Nightclub. The Kid has a huge ego and spars with the female members of his band and a rival band called The Time led by Morris Day. We also get a lot of relationship drama between The Kid and his girlfriend Apollonia (Apollonia Kotero). This film definitely earns its R rating with some pretty steamy scenes so not for the squeamish in that department.
There are long sequences of Prince singing along with Morris and the other bands. If you don’t like their music than this movie isn’t for you. The highlight is the “Purple Rain” number which is a song the girls in the band wrote showing The Kid is finally working with his band, not fighting against them.
There are some scenes in the film of domestic abuse both from The Kid’s father and from he towards Apollonia. It can be tough to watch and I don’t know if the redemption is enough to forgive such violent behavior, but they try to show the arc for both within the film. There is also a lot of cheesy scenes and over-the-top 80s fashion but that’s mostly part of the fun of it all. cor
If you haven’t seen Purple Rain I recommend it as a piece of 80s pop culture with some great music and corny romance. At the very least check out the soundtrack. It’s legendary!
7 out of 10
Smile Worthy
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Reviews like this make me feel old. 😂 😂 😂 I saw this movie 38 years ago. But hey welcome to the club! I have to ask, why did you wait so long?!
Prince is one of the greatest artists to have ever lived and this movie is a testament to that fact. It’s filmic history.
Glad you enjoyed it.
Because I used to not see R rated movies there are a lot of movies like this from the 80s and 90s I’m still catching up with in this blind spot series. Glad to be in the club 😂