The 1984 Oscar-winning Prince movie, Purple Rain, is getting a re-release in Dolby Cinema at AMC Theatres locations in the US and ODEON locations in the UK for one night only on March 5.
“Purple Rain reimagined in Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos for Dolby Cinema is a celebration of Prince’s genius and enduring legacy,’ said Jed Harmsen, Dolby Head of Cinema and Group Entertainment in a statement. “Devoted and new fans alike prepare to be exhilarated by an unforgettable and unparalleled performance from one of music’s greatest of all time.”
The Albert Magnoli directed, and co-written movie with William Blinn follows a young musician, The Kid (Prince), who is tormented by an abusive situation at home, and must contend with a rival singer, a burgeoning romance, and his own dissatisfied band, as his star begins to rise. The soundtrack went platinum 13x becoming Prince’s first album to reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and spending 24 consecutive weeks atop the Billboard 200 and was present on the chart for a total of 167 weeks. There were several hits including “When Doves Cry” and “Let’s Go Crazy” which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, while “Purple Rain” reached No. 2 and “I Would Die 4 U” peaked at No. 8. Prince took home an Oscar for Best Original Song Score for the movie which grossed $70.2M, massive for a stateside release back in the day.
Purple Rain was completely restored digitally from an 8K scan of the 35mm Original Camera Negative (OCN) and also color graded specifically for Dolby Vision. The film’s audio was also restored from the original Dolby Stereo tracks from over 40 years ago and, in conjunction with the 20th anniversary’s 5.1 multi-channel mix master, used to complete a faithfully remastered Dolby Atmos audio presentation.
Purple Rain also won the Grammy Award for Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special (Prince and the Revolution).
