Starring Prince, Apollonia Kotero, Morris Day, and Olga Karatos
Directed by Albert Magnoli
Music and Lyrics by Prince and the Revolution
Sorry this was late! I've been having a rough time of it lately...but I'm finally ready to dig into this one.
Michael Jackson was not the only black rock star in the 1980's to headline his own musical film biography. Prince and the Revolution were one of the hottest bands of the mid-80's, with smashes like "1999" and "Little Red Corvette" under their belt. The enigmatic Prince, with his elaborate Edwardian-style costumes and alternately dark and playful lyrics, proved to be too charismatic in music videos and concerts to remain constrained to the stage for long. How does his first movie look nowadays? Let's begin in Prince's native Minneapolis, Minnesota at the real-life First Avenue Nightclub and find out...
The Story: The Kid (Prince) is raw and magnetic in his performances at First Avenue, but his life behind the scenes is far more troubled. The women in the band want him to consider playing their songs, but he'd rather keep the focus on him. His father (Clarence Williams III), a former musician, heavily abuses his mother (Karatos). The only joy he has besides his music is his girlfriend Apollonia (Kotero), a newcomer to Minneapolis who is also looking to become a singer.
Morris Day (himself) is the head of The Time, another band at First Avenue, who wants The Kid's spot. He convinces club manager Billy (Billy Sparks) to form a girl group with Apollonia as the head singer. Named Apollonia 6, they make their debut at First Avenue and are a hit, despite The Kid publicly humiliating her. The band is still on him about playing music, while his songs are getting a little too personal for the stage, and he's even starting to hit Apollonia the way his father beat his mother. It takes tragedy at home to make The Kid realize how important it is to truly share not only your talents, but those around you, too.
The Song and Dance: It's all about the song here. Prince's raw but glittery style is ably captured in this dark and very meta look at how personal tragedy can influence creativity. Williams and Karatos in particular are stunning in the harrowing scenes of verbal and physical abuse, showing us a relationship breaking down before our - and Prince's - eyes. Prince is magnetic onstage, strutting in wilder numbers like "Let's Go Crazy" and emotional and thrilling in the darkly sexual "Darlin' Nikki." The striking cinematography plays with the bleak Minnesota landscapes, contrasting the Land of 10,000 Lakes with the industrial neons of First Avenue and The Kid's grimy sepia-toned home life.
Favorite Number: The movie opens with the wild "Let's Go Crazy," as the Revolution get the crowd pumping with that smash dance tune. Apollonia joins the Revolution onstage for the more driving "Take Me With U." Prince implores Apollonia to choose him and not the flashier Morris onstage with "The Beautiful Ones." "When Doves Cry" is a lot flashier, with its down-and-dirty lyrics and more emotional plea onstage. "Darlin' Nikki" goes even further into sexuality, with its dark lyrics about a woman obsessed with sex and Prince driving this home by playing it glistening naked to the waist down. The tough "Sex Shooter" is Apollonia 6's big number. The film ends with The Kid finally playing one of his female bandmembers' compositions, the driving "Purple Rain," and a montage of his family and group healing to "I Would Die 4 U."
Trivia: Director Albert Magnoli later became Prince's manager.
What I Don't Like: First and foremost, while there's more of a story and a lot more of interest here than in Moonwalker, this is still a vanity project for a major rock star. If you're not a fan of Prince, his music, or the mid-80's rock/dance scene, you may find a lot of this heavy going. Despite his undeniable charisma, Prince isn't the world's best actor, and his then-real-life girlfriend Apollonia is even less interesting.
Speaking of his parents, strong language, Prince's sex-charged lyrics on several songs, and the harrowing scenes of verbal and physical abuse makes this for adult Prince fans only. This obviously isn't for anyone looking for something lighter or more romantic in their musicals, either.
The Big Finale: As strange and alluring as its undeniably magnetic star. Worth checking out if you love Prince or have fond memories of when the hit songs from this film made him one of the biggest music stars on the planet.
Home Media: A major hit in 1984, this is still easily found anywhere, including on disc and streaming. It can currently be watched for free with ads on Tubi.
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