Purple Rain

Purple Rain is a 1984 American romantic rock musical drama film directed by Albert Magnoli. Adapted from a screenplay by Magnoli and William Blinn, it is scored by and stars Prince in his feature film debut. Developed to showcase his talents, it contains several concert sequences, featuring Prince and his band The Revolution, as well as Apollonia Kotero, Morris Day, Olga Karlatos and Clarence Williams III. Principal photography took place almost entirely in Minneapolis: the film features many local landmarks, including the Crystal Court of the IDS Center and the First Avenue nightclub, which was paid $100,000 for being used during filming; it was closed for 25 days. Purple Rain was theatrically released by Warner Bros. Pictures on July 27, 1984, and grossed $70.3 million worldwide against its $7.2 million budget. The film won an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score. Publications and critics have regarded Purple Rain as one of the greatest musical films. In 2019, the film was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The film was supported with its soundtrack album of the same name, which featured two US chart-topping singles, "When Doves Cry" and "Let's Go Crazy", as well as the number-two hit "Purple Rain". The soundtrack is certified 13× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and has sold over 25 million copies worldwide.