IGN DVD Review -

http://dvd.ign.com/articl...260p1.html

September 15, 2004 - Purple Rain was the film that launched Prince into superstardom. Before that, he was merely a talented musician who was starting to gain a mainstream following with hits like "1999" and "Little Red Corvette," but he was the lesser-known competition to Michael Jackson.

So Prince decided it was time to mark his arrival as a star in a big way, and what better way to do that than a semi-autobiographical big screen star vehicle? Some thought the idea was crazy but, as it turns out, in addition to being a phenomenally talented musician, Prince was also quite the shrewd businessman. Purple Rain went on to become the most successful music-oriented movie ever made and the soundtrack spent months high atop the Billboard charts.

Now, debate has raged on for years between the Prince faithful and the casual observer as to whether Purple Rain is actually a good film. In my opinion, as a very big Prince fan myself, I can say that, as far as an overall film goes, it is a good film in that guilty pleasure sense of "good."

Certainly, it's not a great film. The musical performances are among the most enthralling, incredible performances ever captured on film. Prince is a masterful performer and when he is on the stage, he quite simply owns that stage. No one comes close.

As an actor, however, Prince leaves something to be desired. He's a bit hard to take seriously, especially in that metal studded purple coat he wears throughout most of the film. Still, Purple Rain alone tops anything Madonna ever did in the mega-pop star-turned-thespian category.

When taken with a grain of salt as a guilty pleasure, Purple Rain is a really fun film to watch. Sure, the hairstyles, make-up and dress are a bit dated, but that's part of the fun. There are also a few scenes that just seem so out of place to the film and to Prince's character in particular.

When Apollonia (man, what happened to her?) tells Prince that she is joining Morris Day's band, he savagely smacks her with a backhand. She falls against a dresser and, only a few seconds later, is back in Prince's arms. The intent of this scene is to draw a parallel between himself and his father, whose musical ambitions were never realized and who often took out his pain on his own wife, but it just plain doesn't work.

Not only does the violence seem out of character for Prince's character, The Kid, but it makes his character far less sympathetic. It seems like the scene is supposed to be a turning point for The Kid, but then he nearly gets violent with Apollonia again later in the film. And come on, let's get real, Apollonia would beat the crap out of the 100 pound, heel-wearing Prince.

With that said, Purple Rain is very much a product of it's time. Certain scenes don't hold up well, but the incredible music and accompanying performances are timeless. When, towards the end of the film, the story is told through musical montages, things work much better.

The main fault of the film is that it should have used the music more to tell the story instead of using it as interludes between a Prince autobiography. When Prince gyrates and flops around atop the amplifiers on "Darling Nikki," the moment is more powerful than anything that has come before it in the film. Musically, there are few better rock films out there.

Score: 7 out of 10

The Video

Presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen, Purple Rain shows its age, especially when compared against Warner's older THX 1138 (review tomorrow), which was thoroughly restored by Lowry Digital Images. The film overall is inconsistent. Some shots, especially in the outdoors, are quite good. Others are grainy and soft, almost out of focus, particularly the low light club scenes.

Color levels are less than ideal. Black levels are murky and grainy in places. Skin tones look slightly off, and much of the color palate, which is overwhelmingly dark, looks a bit muted.

There are only minor blemishes on the print, and edge enhancement isn't a problem. With all the dry ice smoke, the transfer still manages to avoid any edge enhancement problems. Compared to the 1997 pan and scan version, it's a major improvement. It's just not going to look brand new, that's all.

Score: 6 out of 10

Languages and Audio

Purple Rain has a Dolby Digital 5.1 track and audio tracks in English and French. Subtitles include English, French and Spanish.

The soundtrack of Purple Rain is a classic and the music comes across much as it has on the CD I've owned for years. The sound is mostly in the front speakers, with very little surround effects from the rear. It's very acceptable but there's nothing revelatory here. It's a nice clean-up and update of a twenty year old film and it's leagues beyond Warner's poor movie-only edition.

Score: 7 out 10

Packaging and Extras

Purple Rain: 20th Anniversary Special Edition comes packaged in a purple DVD clamshell keep case with two discs. On disc one we have the feature and trailers for Purple Rain and Prince's not-so-memorable follow-up vehicles Under the Cherry Moon and Graffiti Bridge.

Also on disc one is a scene specific commentary by director Albert Magnoli, producer Robert Cavallo and director of photography Donald E. Thorin. The commentary is interesting and informative, especially for fans of Prince. The group fondly recalls funny memories from the production and talk about how the project came together.

Since so little is known of Prince, there are some items on working with the star that I found fascinating. Those with a more casual interest in the film or Prince will probably lose interest.

On disc two we have the rest of the special features. First up is a twelve-minute short on the history of Minneapolis' legendary First Avenue nightclub. It's an informative little piece that details the start of the club and its '80s heyday. Wendy and Lisa, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and others discuss their memories of the club and Prince's rise to fame there.

Next is the lengthiest extra, a 30-minute documentary on the production of Purple Rain and retrospective memories from some of the actors and filmmakers. Of course, the notable absence is Prince, who, not surprisingly, had no involvement in this DVD. Morris Day and Apollonia are also missing? Come on, you can't tell me they were too busy.

One moment that I found pretty surprising is an interview with director Albert Magnoli where he talks about a scene from the film between Prince and his dad and how that was right out of Prince's actual life. Magnoli gets pretty choked up talking about it and nearly breaks down. Now that's director's passion!

The next two pieces are mostly about the fun retro kitsch factor of Purple Rain. Riffs, Ruffles and a Revolution shows some of the crazy fashions and make-up trends of the film and of that time period in general. It's a fun little fluff piece that '80s retro fans should enjoy.

Finally, we have what is easily the cheesiest extra and my favorite by far: The MTV Premiere Party. This stuff is so cheeseball and so dated, it's hard to believe this was only 20 years ago. MTV's Mark Goodman (remember that guy?) hosts along with his gigantic fluffy perm fro.

He walks around the party harassing celebrities such as John Cougar (he was still Cougar back then) Mellencamp, "Weird Al" Yankovic and Little Richard. The funniest moment is with Eddie Murphy, who clearly wants to get away from Goodman and does little more than mimic Little Richard and avoid questions.

Last up are a slew of videos from the film: Five from Prince, two from The Time and the lone video from the forgettable Apollonia Six. They're all pretty fun and actually have some pretty great music, primarily featuring scenes from the movie and concert footage.

Score: 8 out of 10