Prefontaine

January. 24,1997      PG-13
Rating:
6.8
Trailer Synopsis Cast

It's the true-life story of legendary track star Steve Prefontaine, the exciting and sometimes controversial "James Dean of Track," whose spirit captured the heart of the nation! Cocky, charismatic, and tough, "Pre" was a running rebel who defied rules, pushed limits ... and smashed records ...

Jared Leto as  Steve Prefontaine
R. Lee Ermey as  Bill Bowerman
Ed O'Neill as  Bill Dellinger
Breckin Meyer as  Pat Tyson
Lindsay Crouse as  Elfriede Prefontaine
Amy Locane as  Nancy Alleman
Laurel Holloman as  Elaine Finley
Brian McGovern as  Mac Wilkins
Kurtwood Smith as  Curtis Cunningham
Shannon Leto as  Bar Patron

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Reviews

StyleSk8r
1997/01/24

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

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Philippa
1997/01/25

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

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Logan
1997/01/26

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

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Scarlet
1997/01/27

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

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krakgal
1997/01/28

Watched this many years ago and revisited as for some reason it stuck in my head. The acting is very good and the writing is .. not great .. but all holds together very well and a very un-taxing film for a date night in. It covers a lot of important people in sport , not just the main protagonist , which makes things even more interesting.It led us to watch the excellent documentary one day in September and Munich .. all relating to the same period and issues of the day....looking forward to the drama detailing how Nike started.Definitely recommended.

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djbens
1997/01/29

I rented this one accidentally thinking it was "Without Limits" starring Billy Crudup. I had seen that before and thought it was a great telling of a terrific story. This one was garbage. The acting was generally bad -- like sitcom bad -- and the makeup was ridiculous, as silly as that sounds, but the actors were made to look older for parts of it and it looked ridiculous. In short, this movie sucks. The other one is actually really good. Don't make the same mistake I made. Get "Without Limits" instead. It's way better. I'm really annoyed I just sat through this with my wife and brother. It takes a great story and makes it super-boring. There are not nearly enough races in this movie considering it's about racing.

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johnny-deppfan185
1997/01/30

This film was fabulous!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was on BBC2 very late so i thought it wouldn't be a good film because they usually put bad films on at that time of night, but OH MY WORD was i wrong!I loved it!it had a funky kind of feel to it (very cool) and great music! Jared Leto plays Prefontaine.Truthfully i had never heard of him before but i wont forget him! he is an amazing actor! not only was he amazing at acting he is very,very, very good looking!!!!!If you love drama, sports, romance, action, or hot guys this film has the perfect amount of everything for your taste! I would advise anyone and everyone to see this film!.GO PRE!!!!!

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fedtho
1997/01/31

I rarely take the time to rate, let alone to comment on a movie I give a 6.This one has a lot going for it. When I searched IMDb, I looked for a movie of the seventies or eighties... NEVER would have thought it's not ten years old. So, at the very least, it succeeds in re-creating (or mimicking?) the atmosphere of that time, including how movies of the seventies feel. That's quite an accomplishment in itself!Jared Leto is unrecognizable (to me, at least) and very convincing...I saw this on TV. I was tempted to leave, but stayed on it until the end. The movie manages to have quite some power of attraction, although the story is rather thin after all... as is Prefontaine's character himself. There was a moment where I just became tired of everything evolving around him and his problems and success... I wondered more and more when someone would tell him there where other people in the world. But no, everyone around him is full of dedication and just wants him to win... it becomes ridiculous. The way his girlfriend, who's equally devoted as anyone else, who's there only to comfort him, NEVER to criticize him, reminded me of some movies of the seventies where women had the same kind of extreme, self-denying devotion - another reason for me to believe the movie actually WAS MADE in that time.It becomes ridiculous, the girl appears to be really brighter than to only be there for him, never encouraging him to question his self-centered attitude... I'm aware this sadly has been true for ages in most couples before the first feminist efforts told women they had a choice... and that it hasn't stopped either just because we are in the third millennium... But the movie is smart in other ways, so it feels wrong his characters aren't.Well - still, the movie has an undeniable charm. And I still recommend it, maybe because the naive side of it strikes me as rather sincere than sarcastic, and, again, because you really believe you are in the seventies. Don't run for it, but give it a shot when you can.

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