Gene Siskel had ‘Purple Rain’ as the 5th best film of 1984! But Dave Kehr said it best...
“Prince’s 1984 movie debut seems more like his deification, with an aggressively stupid plot line (supposedly autobiographical, but if that’s true, Prince must have grown up in a retirement community for burned-out screenwriters) that serves only to set him up as a paragon of artistic integrity, sexual prowess, and superhuman sensitivity. The story dynamics dictate that the film should have climaxed with Prince graciously accepting the Nobel Peace Prize, but instead director Albert Magnoli casually tosses the story aside, ending with half an hour of the concert footage that is the film’s only reason for being. “
You gotta kind of love him for being so open about coming from suburban Minneapolis. Not exactly the kind of place that gives street cred. And compared to other self indulgent pop star semi-biopics it’s actually not that bad. I’d watch Purple Rain over 8 Mile any day.