Derby film falters on home stretch

By Mark Olsen

May 2, 2008

(C-) And they're off - way off, actually.

For those who know the legendary race mostly from Hunter S. Thompson's landmark piece of gonzo journalism, The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent and Depraved, a film such as The First Saturday in May holds the potential to portray the event from a whole new perspective. Filmmakers Brad and John Hennegan follow six horses and their trainers through the arduous 2006 race season, building up to the Derby, but they are never able to find the balance between insider wonkery and genuine human (or animal) drama.

The day-in, day-out culture of horse racing - including weird hats and the focus on trainers over jockeys - remains at an elusive and frustrating remove.

Even with a shift late in the film to focus on the horse Barbaro, who suffered a career-ending injury after the Derby, the mosaic of characters just doesn't feel compelling enough, never coalescing into a greater portrait. And the characters tend to cancel each other out. Sometimes a story does need a star.