I've long been a fan of Prince's music, but for some reason or another, I've never gotten around to watching his 1984 breakout film Purple Rain. I finally got around to it the other night when it made its way to the top of my Netflix DVD list (yes, I still use that service). Making my way through this film, I couldn't help draw direct parallels to today's current climate... especially the Me Too movement. While Purple Rain has some exhilarating musical performances and serves as a showcase for the then 23-year old Prince, it is rife with sexism and misogyny, which hasn't helped it age particularly well. I realize that it's a product of its time, but its flaws are just so glaring that I had a hard time getting past them.
Purple Rain serves as a quasi-autobiography for Prince. He plays "The Kid," the lead singer of The Revolution (Prince's real life band) who is striving to make it big in the Minneapolis music scene. He plays at the First Avenue club, which is owned by Morris Day and his band "The Time." This film definitely blends fantasy and reality in that it mixes real life artists with fictional characters. Shortly into the film, we're introduced to Appollonia (played by Appollonia), as the muse to both The Kid and Morris Day.
The major issue with this film is its portrayal of women (especially Appollonia). They serve as objects to control by both Prince and Morris Day. In an early scene, Prince's character plays a trick on Appollonia by convincing her to jump naked into a lake. She's said maybe two words to him at this point. Morris Day frequently refers to women as "Bitches" and seems to treat them as object. His goal is to put together an all-girl group, but his only request is that they be "hot." Their performance (in nothing but lingerie) of the laughable song "Sex Shooter" is her characters only real shining moment. She is a victim of physical abuse at the hands of Prince's character. The film poorly tries to make a connection between that abuse and the abuse that Prince's mother's character receives at the hands of her husband. The reason this falls flat is that the violence comes out of nowhere, and it's never resolved. There's a forced happy ending between The Kid and Appollonia, where it appears that nothing ever went wrong. And this leads me to...
Purple Rain felt like a giant #MeToo foreshadow. Watching it after the Kavanaugh hearings, I couldn't help but scream out "This is why victims don't come forward!" It's ingrained in our society. It's always "their fault," and the abusers always seem to be given the benefit of the doubt. The Kid's music outshone the fact that he was a physical and mental abuser. Just as Judge Kavanaugh's ability and record as a judge is more important than any potential abuse committed in his past. While Purple Rain has many moments that shine, it feels like a relic of the past... though a past that is still rearing its ugly head.
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