The Corner Penthouse

Warner Brothers recently released the Purple Rain (1984) 4K UHD. Read on to find out more about it...

[ SYNOPSIS ]

The Kid (Prince), a Minneapolis club musician as alienated as he is talented, struggles with a tumultuous home life and his own smoldering anger while taking refuge in his music and his steamy love for sexy Apollonia (Apollonia Kotero). The madness infects his music, fueling a sound that transforms the struggling young rocker into a star.

[ SPECIFICATIONS ]

The movie is presented in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio with a runtime of 1:51:11. The movie has been rated R. Audio languages include English (5.1 & Original Theatrical), French, German, Spanish. Subtitle languages include English SDH, French, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, German SDH, Italian SDH, Japanese, Mandarin (Traditional), Norwegian, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), Swedish. I should also note that unlike the 2007 Blu-ray (I don't have the 2016 Blu-ray), the film includes the original Warner Brothers logos at the start and end and is presented in the original theatrical aspect ratio (both Blu-rays are in 1.78:1 open matte).

[ SPECIAL FEATURES ]

All of the content listed below can be found the UHD disc. Half of the previous Blu-ray and DVD extras are missing (detailed in the Notes section below). All extras are presented in a 1.33:1 aspect ratio, except where otherwise noted. All extras are SD upscaled to HD.

• Audio Commentary - by director Albert Magnoli, producer Robert Cavallo, and cinematographer Donald E. Thorin.
• First Avenue: The Road to Pop Royalty (12:22) - This 2004 DVD featurette gives an inside look at the First Avenue nightclub that gave birth to Prince, Soul Asylum, The Replacements, and others. Features interviews with manager Steve McClellen, members of The Time and Revolution, and various other musicians, journalists and DJs.
• "Let's Go Crazy" Music Video (4:04) - performed by Prince.
• "Take Me with U" Music Video (4:52) - performed by Prince.
• "When Doves Cry" Music Video (5:57) - performed by Prince.
• "I Would Die 4 U/Baby I'm a Star" Music Video (17:55) - performed by Prince.
• "Purple Rain" Music Video (7:04) - performed by Prince. Presented in 16:9 widescreen.
• "Jungle Love" Music Video (3:26) - performed by The Time.
• "The Bird" Music Video (3:48) - performed by The Time.
• "Sex Shooter" Music Video (4:39) - performed by Apollonia 6.

[ ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ]

A digital copy code voucher is included inside the standard one-disc black UHD case. A shiny slipcover is included.

[ NOTES ]

Purple Rain (1984) is available on 4K UHD, Blu-ray (2016 Remastered / Flower Cover & Purple Case), Blu-ray (2007), and DVD (2-Disc Spec. Ed.). Each disc is sold separately; there are no Combo Pack releases for this title in the United States. The U.K. branch of Warners DID release a 4K+Blu-ray Combo Pack, which includes the 2016 Remastered Blu-ray disc that contains all of the extras missing from this 4K-only release. Since it's region-free, you can play it on a U.S. 4K/Blu-ray player. If you don't want to import it to have both discs in one package, then you have to buy either of the two separate Blu-rays to get the complete package.

Yes, this 4K-only release is incomplete, all thanks to U.S. Warner's insistence of no longer including Blu-ray discs with the 4K discs. The 4K disc is missing nearly HALF of the previous Blu-ray/DVD extras. OVER AN HOUR OF CONTENT IS GONE! There is the lengthy featurette "Purple Rain: Backstage Pass" (29:45), and the shorter "Riffs, Ruffles and a Revolution: The Impact and Influence of Purple Rain" (10:01), both of which were created in 2004 for the 2-Disc Special Edition DVD. The film's Trailer (1:29) is noticeably absent (why?), as are the trailers for the other Prince films Under the Cherry Moon (1:30) and Graffiti Bridge (1:46). (Do note that the trailers for the other Prince films are only found on the 2007 Purple Rain Blu-ray.) If you grew up in the 1980s, the "MTV Premiere Party" (27:52) is the biggest loss. It's a great time capsule of the decade. Eddie Murphy shows up in a cheetah-print suit jacket with no shirt on and a black leather handkerchief tied around his neck. Pee Wee Herman rolls up to the red carpet in a tiny toy car. Weird Al Yankovic (mistakenly credited as "Yankovich") fidgets wildly at a table with John Cougar Mellencamp and exclaims, "We all knew Prince was a great actor, but who knew he could sing!" Perhaps most oddly of all, Little Richard shows up to give Prince a Bible. The MTV special also includes the film's TV spot and the music videos for "Let's Go Crazy" and "When Doves Cry".

While the film may not be a masterpiece, it's certainly a campy fun time. What's even better is the Purple Rain soundtrack album! It's readably available on CD, Vinyl, and MP3.

This item has been provided by Warner Brothers for review on this site.