Synopsis

The video opens with white doves passing through ornate doors before revealing Prince alone in a bathtub. He moves through a series of stylized rooms, performing and dancing as scenes from the film Purple Rain appear between the newly filmed sequences. The footage connects the song's emotional tension to the movie's troubled family relationships and romance with Apollonia. The Revolution joins Prince in a stark white performance space, while the closing images use mirrored composition to create a striking doubled portrait of the singer.

Factoids & Trivia

• The video premiered on MTV in June 1984, shortly after the song was released as the lead single from Purple Rain.

• It was one of Prince's first promotional films to move beyond a straightforward performance format, combining staged imagery, choreography, multiple sets and a loose narrative structure.

• Much of the video consists of footage from Purple Rain, including scenes involving The Kid, Apollonia and his parents. This made the clip function partly as a visual extension of the movie.

• The bathtub sequence and the use of real white doves contributed to the video's sensual, theatrical identity. Some television executives considered its sexual imagery too explicit for regular broadcast.

• The final section mirrors one side of the image, producing a symmetrical double of Prince. The effect is especially noticeable during the performance and dance passages.

• The video received a nomination for Best Choreography in a Video at the 1985 MTV Video Music Awards, with Prince credited for the choreography.

• A longer version runs approximately 5 minutes and 58 seconds, while shorter edits were also circulated for television and promotional use.

• Although the single is credited to Prince and The Revolution, Prince recorded all of the instruments and vocals on the studio track himself.