From Amazon.com
Since audiences are inclined to F/X spectacle, it was easy to understand the 1998 box-office battle between
Armageddon and
Deep Impact, which shared almost exactly the same premise. But two films about the now-obscure long-distance runner Steve Prefontaine?
Without Limits and
Prefontaine were in production at the same time, with the cheaper
Prefontaine rushed into theaters in 1997 while
Without Limits was held back until the fall of '98. As it turned out, neither movie scored a deep impact at the box office, but
Without Limits is much more satisfying as a competent, heartfelt slice of sports history. Billy Crudup (a rising star who strongly resembles the film's producer, Tom Cruise, in both looks and intensity) plays Prefontaine, or "Pre," the mustachioed runner who blazed out of Coos Bay, Oregon, in the late 1960s. The movie grazes across the major events of Pre's career at the University of Oregon, where he blew away the competition and positioned himself as the leading American runner (and a charismatic hunk) going into the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich--that star-crossed competition at which Arab terrorists kidnapped and killed members of the Israeli team. Though the film suffers from some of the built-in problems of the true-life biopic, director Robert Towne (who earlier made a remarkable track-and-field picture,
Personal Best) captures the texture of the athletes' world. Acting honors go to Donald Sutherland, turning in an emotional performance as coach Bill Bowerman; while tutoring Pre, Bowerman was tinkering with some waffle-soled running shoes, a hobby that later became a little company called Nike.
--Robert Horton
Review
Without Limits is a return to familiar territory for screenwriter Robert Towne, whose directorial debut, Personal Best (1982), also focused on Olympic athletes. Towne makes his third stab at directing, with engaging if unspectacular results, successfully translating the love of the sport but unable to make it contagious. Produced by Tom Cruise, Without Limits failed to beat Prefontaine -- the competing version of the story directed by Steve James and starring Jared Leto -- to the multiplexes. But neither film made much of an impact on an audience generally unfamiliar with the exceptional distance runner, who was killed in a car accident at age 24. The 25th anniversary of the Munich Olympics seems to be the peg for the sudden renewed interest in Prefontaine, but his story is not quite compelling enough to speak to audiences beyond his group of worshippers, who will no doubt be satisfied with this project. Billy Crudup exudes effortless charisma as the mercurial athlete, and Monica Potter glows as his girlfriend. Donald Sutherland also has fun with eccentric coach and mentor Bill Bowerman, but what's even more fun is learning about the origins of the Nike shoe company, which Bowerman founded alongside magnate Phil Knight. For example, the prototype for Bowerman's revolutionary "waffle" sole design was indeed cooked up in his waffle iron. These and other details make Without Limits a likable biopic, but it's too middle of the road to make a lasting impression outside of distance-running circles. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
See all Product Description
(129)
CDN$ 15.99
(4)
CDN$ 14.56
(2)
CDN$ 15.98
(
