Prefontaine
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Movie Reviews of Prefontaine
Movie Review: Prefontaine or Without Limits
Summary: 4 Stars
It's been a few years since I first saw 'Prefontaine'. I'd seen it several times and I finally saw 'Without Limits' tonight.Prefontaine:
Acting
I thought the acting in this movie could have been much better. The principle actors were decent, but it was a long drop off to the secondaries as far as acting talent. I felt Leto was more brash, cocky and arrogant. In comparison to Crudup, it made me feel Pre was this way on many occasions more out of fear or a need to be arrogant, as opposed to true belief in himself. More like a prima donna.
Facts
Given that these are movies and not documentaries, I really don't care about the small ones such as how close a race was, etc. But would like to get the truth on the the bigger issues such as personal relationships, how he hurt his foot (there either were witnesses, or there were not), and how directly he was involved in the fight against the AAU. I liked the added details in Munich and his life after Munich, showing his continued successes. These details were great from an informational perspective, but it certainly made the direction seem choppy. Without input from Pre himself, so many aspects of his friendship and love life are skewed by the perspective of the person that is recounting it, and can be questioned in both movies. To observe it is to change it, as they say. I would certainly say if you asked for the story of my uneventful life from 2 different ex-girlfriends, you would probably get 2 completely different stories.
Racing
This movie seemed a little shallow in this area. It seemed like all it did to teach the audience about strategy and Pre's abilities was to say, "You are too slow to sprint, so you have to push the pace faster to make the kickers tired". Maybe that is as much detail as the common viewer wants, but I would have liked to have seen more. I thought the race sequences in both films were good.
The interviews mixed with tradional story telling might have worked better if the casting had been better. Production quality was not as good as WL.
Without Limits -
Acting
By FAR the superior movie. Crudup and Sutherland's relationship just felt so much more real. And a million times more mature. You have to question authenticity of course, but their philosophical conflicts truly drive this movie and make the overall product much more mature.
Facts
This is not meant to be a documentary, and I can understand having to summarize 3-4 events into 1 event to make an accurate point - whether you are talking about Pre's love life or his races - for the sake of drama or time. I still would have liked to seen at least a few minutes talking about Pre's races after Munich instead of leaving the new viewer to thinking that he only ran 1 meet after Munich, and he died later that night. To me this was a weakness in the film. It left a lot of places where you have to fill in the blanks - such as Bowerman's appointment as Olympic coach, the Pre graduated and was no longer a student, etc. Now that I've seen both films and have a stronger grip on the true facts, skipping these details aren't as big of a deal as they are merely background to what is happening to Pre - as long as you are already aware of them.
Racing
In addition to focusing on Pre's relationships, it spent more time on race strategy, introducing other athletes than just Viren, and seemed to engage the sport at a deeper level. As a former competitor, this interested me quite a bit. Prefontaince had more race sequences, but I thought the sound effects in WL were great to create the feel of the race. The tension felt of running in the pack was expertly done, and the acting of Crudup in these sequences was good. I would have liked to see a little more pain on their faces and a little less closed-mouth running. WL did a better job at showing exactly how fast a 63 second quarter is.
This movie went out of its way to focus on Pre, Mary, and Bowerman's relationships. This just felt more authentic and mature. I think it is a shame they had to sum up so many of Pre's races - before and after the Olympics - but this was a conscious decision made to embrace Pre's story by showing fewer of his races - which can be felt as redundant in this medium, and humanizing him more. Prefontaine did a great job showing Pre's drive and heart, but I thought WL was more rewarding by showing his struggles with himself and those close to him - which surely must have existed.
While both movies showed some sides of Pre that aren't always listed as 'good' characteristics, only in WL did it truly feel like reality. The dialogue in Prefontaine certainly felt more like a Disney movie and combined with delivery, it was all a little contrived.
Once again, I felt that Without Limits was more the thinking-man's version of the movie, while Prefontaine did an excellent job with the facts of Pre's racing career and had an emotionally high value throughout the movie. Both raw emotion and embracing a new philosophy can inspire someone, and they both succeed at this. I would probably choose Prefontaine to show to people that do not know Pre's story, but for my own viewing, I would probably watch Without Limits repeatedly to get to the heart of the human story and struggles with philosophy, passion, and desire.
Movie Review: A very good bio pick of a great runner who died too young
Summary: 4 Stars
Steve Prefontaine, a record setting middle distance runner, won all his races against Americans. He led his race in the 1972 Olympics but faded to fourth by a breath. He died in a car accident (drinking was involved, but to what degree is debated) in 1975 at the age of 24. All admit that he wasn't the perfect physical specimen for a runner, but he was gritty and tenacious and would not give anything less than everything he had.
You would think it would be hard to come up with a full length bio pic about someone who died at 24. Yet, in 1998 there were TWO films that came out about his life. One from Disney and the other from Warner Brothers.
The Disney Film tells the story from the point of view of the assistant coach who was with him day-to-day, Bill Dellinger and Prefontaine's girlfriend at the time of his death, Nancy Alleman. It has a good cast with Jared Leto as Prefontaine, Ed O'Neil as Bill Dellinger and R. Lee Ermy as Bill Bowerman. Siskel and Ebert reviewed it and gave it two thumbs up.
The Warner Brothers release was produced by Tom Cruise and told from the point of view of Bill Bowerman with Dellinger as a minor character and Mary Marckx. In this film there is no Nancy Alleman and Mary is his girlfriend all the way through. Bowerman is played by Donald Sutherland and is given guru status. In both films, Prefontaine is shown as headstrong and difficult to coach. Bowerman did remain active with the Oregon program and with Prefontaine after his retirement.
In both films, Prefontaine is shown as a powerful and hard charging runner who also loved to party too much and had troubled relationships with his young women. The fans love him and his fame is correctly portrayed as is his loss at the '72 Olympics.
Since the accident occurred while Prefontaine was alone in the car no one can be certain how it happened. Both films have him swerving from a second car, but the Warner film shows the rock face that the car climbed and caused it to flip on top of the runner and crushing him. He was alive when first found, but the person could not flip the car alone and by the time they got back he was gone.
Prefontaine continues to inspire young runners and people who believe that testing your limits and giving all you have is important to living and understanding your life. That these tests are a kind of art that you create for yourself and are a kind of honesty that few actually experience (even though it is open to all).
Both movies are good, and you have to decide if seeing two films about such a short life is needed, but there is certainly much worse fare shown every night on TV and at your local movie house.
Movie Review: A young man matures but then is lost to us
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a good film. It entertains totally. Jared Leto does a splendid job of maintaining the center of attention for almost the entire film. This is a sign of a considerable actor to hold our attention for two full hours as the figure almost always on screen.
It is an inspirational film but also a cautionary one. I say this because Prefontaine's ambitions and self assurance seem adolescent at first. Like many young high school seniors, he knows everything and no one can tell him anything. He just happens to be one of the most talented and determined high school seniors in the nation. The film takes Prefontaine through a series of events that begin to teach him his personal limits, his priorities, his commitment to others, and finally that he must adjust to events larger than himself. In a sentence, this film is about an extremely self-motivated and self-centered talented young man who becomes a better person as he adjusts to the hard knocks that come to all of us in life. The major hard knocks for Prefontaine are the terrible events in Munich and his performance which disappointed him. IN many ways this is the best part of the film for we get to see the terror of the events in Munich and we get to see Prefontaine's reactions to those events.
Jared Leto goes a good job playing this young man. I wish he had been able to reap the rewards of maturity.
Movie Review: A Forgotten Comet, While Others Mere Stars
Summary: 4 Stars
A longtime runner, myself, who'd forgotten about this rising star in the runner's world, can testify to "Prefontaine" being the best athlete bio-pic of recent memory that surprises, informs and inspires in the best sense of the word.You'll lace up the running shoes after this film. The script was generous to all the supporting people who nurture greatness in the form of Steve Prefontaine. Special mention should go to the casting and artistic control of this looking back upon the start of the jogging era. Jared Leto plays Prefontaine like a glove, at first running on brashness to finish on unselfish awareness. Certainly, there are parallels to James Dean here, but when actual Munich footage enters effectively, Leto's portrayal ascends with the laurels Prefontaine earned. Next to "Jim Thorpe--All Merican" in inspiration, "Prefontaine" uplifts with its sad ending, while "Thorpe" falls away despairingly. When you watch this film unfold as much about a gifted athlete as a giving one, and you reflect upon the selfish ones today, you will want to learn more about this comet who blazed once brightly. And that makes this the exceptional film.Movie Review: Better than "Without Limits"-A Must See for Runners
Summary: 4 Stars
Another movie that is a must see for runners of all ability. I would definitely say that I rate "Prefontaine" above "Without Limits." From the makers of "Hoop Dreams," Prefontaine follows in the same footsteps and creates a docudrama that is unforgettable and very watchable-even to those not interested in the sport. The main cast, Jared Leto and R. Lee Ermey as the unforgettable Bill Bowerman, are really quite good for a film of this budget. "Prefontaine" follows Pre's story more closely than "Without Limits" and definitely offers more for runners to sink their teeth into.Admittedly, the film's appeal is probably limited to those who are truly interested or inspired by the sport of running (or know someone who is). But athletes of all sports will enjoy Pre's story of defiance and heart. If you watch one of the two films, I'd see this one.