Purple Rain is semi-autobiographical, reflecting on Prince’s time in the Minneapolis music scene and the competition for fame and stage time. Prince plays The Kid, the talented bandleader and lead singer of The Revolution. They are in competition with Morris Day and his band The Time for the top spot at First Avenue, a club with three house bands, a hub for activity on the scene. Arriving new on the scene is Apollonia, an aspiring singer who catches the eye of the band leaders for different reasons. The Kid wants to be with Apollonia and doesn’t help her in nurturing her career; Morris wants to feature her in his new girl group, while also adding another notch in his belt. The Kid lives with his parents, his father a rough and abusive man who is a former musician and whose turbulent behavior cost The Kid’s mom her performing career. The turbulence of an unstable home life, the insecurity of a new relationship and the threats of losing his position at the club cause The Kid to act neglectful of his band, and a moment of emotion leads to a violent outburst against Apollonia that damages their relationship and draws parallels to The Kid and his father. Seeking to succumb to the violence and teach his father, Francis, a lesson following a violent outburst, The Kid is instead met with the sight of his fathers attempted suicide, and he contemplates avoiding the mistakes of his father. Instead, The Kid finds a secret storage of sheet music from his father, a key similarity his father denied, and turns his energy to fixing his relationship with his band and his audience, and sets forth a course of reconciliation with Apollonia, and most importantly, himself.



It would be easy to dismiss Purple Rain as a vanity project to feature Prince’s music, and there are definite issues with a cast full of non-actors embarking on a dramatic performance. The Kid's paper thin barrier to partner abuse is #problematic, and the treatment of women in general are not a good look viewing it through modern sensibilities. Putting aside some critical quibbles and advising you to consider the seriousness of domestic abuse with your enjoyment of this film, I find Purple Rain to be the perfect musical of the 80’s.

Purple Rain operates outside of the standard method of a musical, avoiding the spontaneous reality-breaking that a performance like Singin In The Rain’s ‘Good Morning’ would feature, in favor of soundtracked performances, always from a stage, that address the mood of the situation in the film. Purple Rain opens with ‘Let’s Go Crazy’, a manifesto for enjoying the moment and setting the mood for The Kid. Morris Day and The Time’s ‘Jungle Love’ delivers a response to The Kid, setting up their rivalry. When The Kid is met with skepticism of his ability to be a top draw at the club, he responds with a raunchy performance, and when his lover walks in the door with his rival, he delivers a blistering tell-all to the crowd. ‘Purple Rain’ acts as the 11 o’clock number, signaling The Kid finding peace and resolution with himself. It echoes classical musicals, but with the unique aesthetic of the 1980’s and music video culture. Prince would win much acclaim for the songs in the film, winning Grammys, Golden Globes and an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score, a defunct category recognizing full soundtracks as opposed to one track.