KINETIC BIOPIC SHOWCASES STAR BRATT, LITTLE ELSE.

Byline: Evan Henerson Staff Writer

If writer/director Leon Ichaso is to be believed, the people in Miguel Pinero's life put up with quite a bit of heartache and betrayal to be around this tortured - and occasionally torturing - artist. Then again, great artists seem to get away with swinish behavior (see: ``Pollock'') because ... well ... because they're great artists. And Pinero, the author of ``Short Eyes'' and co-founder of the New Yorican Poets Cafe, was indeed a literary genius.

``Pinero,'' Ichaso's rock-video-like biopic, doesn't exactly justify Pinero, but it doesn't soft-pedal the man either. It would be nice to know why so many people threw roses at Pinero's feet; what, outside of his plays and poetry, made the guy so magical. The artist's hard-living, devil-may- care swagger translates, thanks largely to some glamorously grungy work by Benjamin Bratt, but Bratt's basically doing a solo performance. Everybody else is there to throw roses, get screwed over or take it on the chin when informed, as Pinero is often heard to proclaim, that ``it bees that way sometimes.''

An iconic Puerto Rican whose pre-rap poetics led him from prison to the Public Theatre in New York to his grave at the age of 42, Pinero never exactly cleaned himself up. At one point, Ichaso cross-cuts between Public Theatre Director Joseph Papp giving Pinero a flattering introduction and the artist and a friend mugging a woman for her fur coat. Creature of the art house and creature of the street side by side. Papp is played by Mandy Patinkin, looking like some private article of clothing is about a size and a half too small.

With his cinematic artyness, Ichaso the director may be trying to dazzle us out of seeing the holes that Ichaso the writer has left gaping. Call it the salad-spinner approach to filmmaking: scenes jump from black and white to color while Pinero's mother, artistic mentor, girlfriend, male lover and junkie pals are thrown into his orbit for a brief encounter before spiraling back out again. They don't resonate. Bratt does.

We see Pinero reciting poetry at the New Yorican Poets Cafe that he co- founded with Miguel Algarin (Giancarlo Esposito). When not plying his artistic trade, he is usually boozing, smoking, shooting up or threatening a drag queen, half jokingly, to obtain her liver (Pinero had cirrhosis). And to think, people say there aren't enough Latino role models on screen ...

Bratt's ability to find the humanity in this guy is a feat indeed. John Leguizamo reportedly turned down the role because some of Pinero's behavior was too despicable. But Bratt, 180 degrees from the much cleaner Rey Curtis he played on ``Law & Order,'' takes the plunge with unhammy gusto. He's in practically every scene, acting opposite only himself and Pinero's aura.

In this film, that makes for some stiff competition. Vampy gal pal Sugar (Talisa Soto) is reduced to lines like ``Whatever you want, Mikey, I'm your whore.'' Rita Moreno as Pinero's mother has nothing to do. Esposito gets a moment or two.

Otherwise it's 90 minutes with a man who, if this film is to be believed, was clearly a much better wordsmith than he was human being.

``PINERO''

(Rated R: language, sexuality, drug use)

The stars: Benjamin Bratt, Giancarlo Esposito, Talisa Soto, Mandy Patinkin.

Behind the scenes: Written and directed by Leon Ichaso. Released by Miramax.

Playing: One-week Oscar qualifying run at the GCC Beverly Connection Theatre in West Hollywood.

Running time: One hour, 3 minutes.

Our rating: Two and one half stars.

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Talisa Soto co-stars with Benjamin Bratt, who plays the title role in ``Pinero.''