Oregon Attorney Lawyer

FOR THE first 45 minutes into the story of track and field legend Steve Prefontaine, we are watching the nascent, tentative steps of a talented director making his dramatic debut, and it’s a mess.

But then, just when it appears the race is lost, Steve James’ love for his character and art form kicks in and wins the day, and, though flawed, “Prefontaine” is an engrossing portrait of a complex figure.

James’ training is in documentaries. His “Hoop Dreams” has become, since its release two years ago, a sort of Rosetta stone of sports documentaries. His depiction of two youths from the Chicago ghettos and their dreams of playing pro basketball is an instant classic, rivaled only by Leni Riefenstahl’s “Olympia” (1936) in the genre.

How, then, to follow a masterpiece?

James chose to film the Prefontaine story, using Super-16mm film stock and a $9 million budget. It is an ideal choice for a movie subject - so ideal that another Prefontaine film, costing $30 million and directed by Robert Towne, will be released later this year.

A phenom at distance running while still in high school, Prefontaine used a relentless drive and determination to offset a smallish physique atypical of track athletes. He had a gift for winning and an unshakable charisma that made him a crowd favorite.

While still at the University of Oregon, Prefontaine made the cover of Sports Illustrated, shattered several NCAA records and competed in the 5,000 meters at the 1972 Munich Olympics. He then led a movement to help amateur track and field athletes achieve more independence and better training conditions. He was preparing for the 1976 Montreal Olympics when he lost his life in an auto accident in 1975 at age 24.

Jared Leto, a young actor familiar to television viewers of “My So-Called Life,” is a dead ringer for Prefontaine, who is shown in actual footage from track meets. Leto’s whispered, even-voiced line readings would have been overplayed by many other actors, but his subtle flamboyance plays well.

But the film starts off on the wrong foot. James, seemingly unsure about making a straight dramatization, has documentary-style “interviews” with the actors who play people who knew Prefontaine. Within this context, James breezes through the obligatory scenes of rebellious youth, such as his jump off a high bridge that his friends are afraid to leap from, and his early days and love life at Oregon, as if Prefontaine were a one-dimensional made-for-television character, always trying his damnedest.

Then something magical happens: We begin to care. As the handsome Leto becomes more comfortable in the role, James begins to let loose his filmmaking skills, deftly weaving precise period re-creations and documentary footage to add dimension and humanity to Prefontaine, as well as his coach (superbly played by R. Lee Ermey) and girlfriend (Amy Locane).

Prefontaine was more than winning or losing. His relationships with his teammates, who initially perceive him as a prima donna, and his adoring media and public are well handled, and thankfully, the fake “interviews” become less frequent. James’ re-creation of the Munich Olympics and the ensuing terrorist tragedy is a powerfully moving sequence.

Without a doubt, this is a sugar-coated, PG-13 version of the Prefontaine legend. It was sanctioned by the Prefontaine family, so his reputation for living the fast life that may have contributed to his demise is, predictably, muted.

But James has a way of making an audience respond to his characters - as he did in “Hoop Dreams.’ His love for Prefontaine and his quest to understand the character seem genuine. James may not be a master of this type of film form, but he more than makes up for that with his heart.