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First Looks || ||

Exclusive Book Excerpt: How A Terrible Script for Prince's Purple Rain Became The Best Rock Musical Ever Made

Purple Rain

It's been called the greatest rock musical ever made, the movie that launched Prince into the mainstream consciousness: 1984's Purple Rain. The semi-autobiographical story of a Minneapolis musician known as The Kid and his struggles with success, love, and an abusive father -- told as much through Prince's tortured swagger as through iconic chart-topping songs like "When Doves Cry" and the titular "Purple Rain" -- struck a chord with audiences and earned Prince an Oscar for Best Score to boot. But, as recounted in an exclusive excerpt from John Kenneth Muir's book Purple Rain: Music on Film, the film was headed for the rocks until neophyte director Albert Magnoli dared to tell Prince the truth about the film's initial script: "Well, I think it sucked."
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Festivals || ||

Watch: Kids Vs. Killers in the Sundance Midnight Movie Short The Legend of Beaver Dam

Watch: Kids Vs. Killers in the Sundance Midnight Movie Short The Legend of Beaver Dam

The midnight movie crowd at Sundance hooted for the grindhouse pic Hobo with a Shotgun, but it downright fell in love with the charming horror-musical short that played in front of it in a brilliant stroke of spot-on programming. The twists in Jerome Sable and Eli Batalion's 12-minute short The Legend of Beaver Dam are best left unspoiled, but suffice to say it involves a campfire tale, screaming children, plenty of gore, and a metal rock sing-off between a nerdy kid hero and a bloodthirsty killer. Sable and Batalion are supposedly working on a feature along the lines of Beaver Dam, so take a peek at this teaser and keep an eye out for more from these two. [StumpySam.com]