Six years later, after some moderate success, Prince starred in the semi-autobiographical movie, Purple Rain. The film and the soundtrack- an album of the same name - were critical and financial successes, making $70 million worldwide on a $7 million budget. They also earned one Oscar Award for Best Original Song Score, Brit, and Grammy Awards. Forty years later, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has released the movie in 4K for the first time.
The Kid (Prince; Under the Cherry Moon) is very talented. He also has a rough home life where he and his mother are abused by his father. He escapes reality by rehearsing and playing with his band at the First Avenue nightclub but when the headlining group, Morris Day and The Time, convinces the club owner to replace The Kid and his band, The Kid gets angry and ends up hitting his girlfriend, Apollonia (Apollonia Kotero; Falcon Crest), who is fronting the replacement band - an all-girl group called Apollonia 6.
When The Kid returns home later that night, he finds the house in disarray and his mother nowhere to be found. He then finds his father in the basement with a shotgun who proceeds to shoot himself. Distraught the kid trashes the basement and finds his father's music. He begins composing, including working on a song the women in his band wrote. That night on stage, The kid plays the new compositions and earns everyone's applause and respect.
The video is taken from an 8K scan of the original 35mm negative, giving the movie an excellent visual presentation. The 2160p resolution is sharp and clean though the color saturation is 100% and the night scenes aren't as clean as the daytime, outside shots. However, this is the best Purple Rain has ever looked on home release and it adds another element to the overall look and feel of the film.
The audio, which let's face it, is a huge part of the movie is robust and full and the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 is a joy to listen to. It is surprising that with the video upgrade the powers that be didn't release the movie with a Dolby Atmos audio track. The soundtrack is strong regardless but it makes you wonder what it would have sounded like with the latest technology.
The Purple Rain 4K U Disc includes previously released special features, which are: Commentary by director Albert Magnoli, producer Robert Cavallo, and cinematographer Donald E. Thorin, First Avenue: The Road to Pop Royalty - featurette, Let's Go Crazy - music video, Take Me With U - music video, When Doves Cry - Music Video, I Would Die 4 U/Baby I'm a Star - music video, Purple Rain - music video, Jungle Love - music video, The Bird - music video, and Sex Shooter - music video.
Prince was always a showman and Purple Rain brought that side of him to a whole new level. The story and acting were okay and the costumes and set designs were appropriate for the 1980s but honestly, the big draws at the time were 1) that Prince was in a movie, 2) the music, 3) the music, and 4) oh, did I mention the music?
If you are a Prince fan and/or an '80s music fan... this 4K combo pack is a must!
Grade: B
