Purple Rain

Play trailer

Purple Rain

R,

1984,

1h 51m,

Musical/

Drama/

Romance/

Music

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

75%

60 Reviews

Tomatometer

78%

25,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

75%

Tomatometer

60 Reviews

78%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

A victim of his own anger, the Kid (Prince) is a Minneapolis musician on the rise with his band, the Revolution, escaping a tumultuous home life through music. While trying to avoid making the same mistakes as his truculent father (Clarence Williams III), the Kid navigates the club scene and a rocky relationship with a captivating singer, Apollonia (Apollonia Kotero). But another musician, Morris (Morris Day), looks to steal the Kid's spotlight -- and his girl.

Critics Consensus

Purple Rain makes for undeniably uneven cinema, but it's held together by its star's singular charisma -- not to mention a slew of classic songs.

Read Critics Reviews

Joel Selvin

San Francisco Chronicle

Dec 8, 2025

4/4

The film hangs on the flimsiest of plots, but the movie is really about Prince delivering the message in his music. And it is above all a frankly sentimental film about love -- not sex, fired by the spectacular music.

Go to Full Review

Eric Deggans

NPR

Nov 28, 2019

Purple Rain became a generational manifesto, while providing the largest megaphone yet for one of the greatest geniuses in pop music.

Go to Full Review

Duane Byrge

The Hollywood Reporter

Aug 7, 2018

Even those who aren't Prince fans are likely to be captivated by its energy, enamored with its simple, often poignant storyline.

Go to Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Nov 16, 2025

3/4

The drama is clunky, the acting is awful more often than not, and the casual sexism simmers throughout. But whenever Prince takes the stage, the picture irresistibly exudes sex, sweat, and swagger in equal measure.

Go to Full Review

Douglas Corzine

Washington City Paper

Sep 15, 2025

Purple Rain features some of the most thrilling musical sequences ever put on film.

Go to Full Review

Jennie Kermode

Eye for Film

Mar 6, 2025

4/5

More than just an extended music video.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Poe L

Feb 18, 2019

Not a masterpiece but still an enjoyable film with good music.

Leia S

Feb 12, 2019

The best movie I watched

Feb 2, 2019

The best musical movie ever made! With the best movie song ever sung: Let's Go Crazy!

Luke S

Nov 24, 2018

One of my absolute personal favorites, but only a Prince fan and a few others would enjoy.

Hermione S

Sep 15, 2018

It's cool to see Prince at the time and all the performances and fellow acts of that moment in time getting together in some high def performances. It's kind of like Magical Mystery Tour; incredible musical time capsule mixed with a pretty half-baked movie.

See more

Finn P

Feb 28, 2018

This movie is sooooooo 80's. I love it. That chick, Apollonia, is one of the finest chicks I've seen in a movie. She's so sexy and fine but also can be cute. The chemistry between Prince and Apollonia, you can tell, is very genuine almost as if their really dating. I really liked all the characters in this movie. Though everything was great about this movie, I have one quarrel with it. And it's that it didn't go deep enough with the story. Their wasn't really any character development either. I feel like half of the movie is Prince doing a live set and the other half is the movie. The live set side I don't mind, actually it's probably what I liked most. But there's not enough meat in the story. I feel like it presents the problems and situations well, but falls flat on progressing the story and it's characters. They should have gone more in depth with the story and Prince's backstory with his parents as well as Apollonia's. It would have been nice to see that.

See more

Read all reviews

Albert Magnoli

Director

Prince

The Kid

Apollonia Kotero

Apollonia

Morris Day

Morris

Jerome Benton

Jerome

Clarence Williams III

Father

Frankie and Johnny

69%

68%

Frankie and Johnny

Watchlist

The Prince of Tides

77%

70%

The Prince of Tides

Watchlist

La Bamba

83%

78%

La Bamba

Watchlist

TRAILER

for La Bamba

An Officer and a Gentleman

81%

81%

An Officer and a Gentleman

Watchlist

TRAILER

for An Officer and a Gentleman

When a Man Loves a Woman

68%

77%

When a Man Loves a Woman

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Amy Sedaris’s Five Favorite Films

TV Composers Quiz: How Well Do You Know These Melody Makers?

Prince: 1958-2016

View more photos

Synopsis

A victim of his own anger, the Kid (Prince) is a Minneapolis musician on the rise with his band, the Revolution, escaping a tumultuous home life through music. While trying to avoid making the same mistakes as his truculent father (Clarence Williams III), the Kid navigates the club scene and a rocky relationship with a captivating singer, Apollonia (Apollonia Kotero). But another musician, Morris (Morris Day), looks to steal the Kid's spotlight -- and his girl.

Director: Albert Magnoli
Producer: Robert Cavallo, Steven Fargnoli, Joseph Ruffalo
Screenwriter: William Blinn
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co: Warner Bros., Purple Films
Rating: R
Genre: Musical, Drama, Romance, Music
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 27, 1984, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Mar 5, 2025
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 15, 2008
Runtime: 1h 51m
Sound Mix: Surround

Join The Newsletter

Join The Newsletter

Cookie Settings