Produced by Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, Scott Sanders and Quincy Jones, THE COLOR PURPLE is a bold new take on the classic story of love and resilience, adapted from the beloved novel and the Broadway musical.
Torn apart from her sister and her children, Celie faces many hardships in her life, but ultimately learns to find extraordinary strength in the unbreakable bonds of a new kind of sisterhood.
Welcome to the Deep South at the dawn of the 20th century. We use the term ‘welcome’ loosely, because nobody wants to be here – especially Celie, a young African-American woman living in grinding poverty and barely surviving her sexually abusive father, Alphonso.
Sold into marriage to a farmer named Mister – whose treatment of his new wife is no better – Celie is wrenched from her beloved sister, Nettie, whom she soon assumes to be dead.
So far, so grim, but the original novel’s introduction of a charismatic female jazz musician named Shug Avery gave the story a chink of light and tender love story – while providing a logical entry point for the musical treatment.
And as director Blitz Bazawule explains, in The Color Purple movie 2024, the music is not a garnish but an emotional release valve when the pressure becomes unbearable:
“The best power of musicals is when the music kicks in when the words are not enough.”
“This is Fantasia Barrino’s moment and she grabs it with both hands.”
Empire
“The rough edges of Steven Spielberg’s 1985 adaptation have been softened but the evocative energy of this movie-musical’s three female leads is magical.
A heartfelt new version supercharged by a powerhouse cast.”
Guardian
“ The Color Purple: an irresistible all-singing, all-sobbing weepie with sequins
This take on the Pulitzer Prize-winner about the struggles of black women in the American South is a surprisingly fun jolt of musical joy ”
Telegraph
