At its core, the film is about a number of things. Front and center are father-son relationships, always a soft spot for this viewer. Also leading the charge is journalistic integrity, albeit a theme that rears its head deep into the film. There are elements of reckless ambition and notions of honesty at play as well, and truly, the mixture is a healthy and conceivable one to balance on the canvas of a cinematic undertaking. It’s quite the original thematic soufflé, if you will.

Josh Hartnett stars as Erik Kernan, a composite of Los Angeles Times reporter J.R. Moehringer, upon whose Los Angels Times Magazine article the film is based. Separated from his wife, desperate to stay in his son’s life and aching for a professional break, Kernan passes his days as a sports journalist with the Denver Times, covering miniscule or, in his view, trivial events that typically find themselves buried in the sports section by editor Metz (Alan Alda).

One day Kernan stumbles upon a homeless man known to the neighborhood as Champ (Samuel L. Jackson) and finds the opportunity he has been looking for. It seems that Champ is none other than former boxing great “Battling” Bob Satterfield, long considered dead and certainly not presumed living on the streets of Denver. Taking his shot and deceiving his editor for the more venerable coverage of the Denver Times Magazine (the switch from Los Angeles is awkward, but so be it), Kernan pitches the story to editor Whitley (David Paymer, in a hilarious background performance) and takes to interviewing a subject who will open his eyes to insights about himself, yada, yada, yada.

A lot of that seems expected and even reads as trite as I hammer the thoughts out in this space, but where “Resurrecting the Champ” approaches something more, something deeper, is in the parallels it begins to sketch out between father-son honesty and the greater good honesty and responsibility of a journalist. Questions of lies told in love being as damaging as lies told in malice start to surface and, honestly, begin to make a lot of sense. But they also eventually find themselves drowned out by the surrounding thematic imagery and connectivity, multiple valid points striving to land on the bull’s-eye at the exact same time.

All of that said, I don’t believe Samuel L. Jackson has given a more thorough performance in the five years since “Changing Lanes.” I would consider taking it back as far as “Jackie Brown” or even “Pulp Fiction” to find a portrayal from the actor as lived-in as this, one that doesn’t feel like “Sam doing his thing.” Jackson is every bit as astounding in nuance and inflection as in physicality. He becomes Champ in this film, and I’d say it is one of the few award-worthy performances we’ve seen thus far in 2007.

Josh Hartnett is capable, though there are many moments that leave you wondering how he continues to find himself employed. There remains nothing compelling about Hartnett’s appearance, nothing charismatic about his work and certainly nothing demanding “must-see” attention. I don’t get it, and maybe that’s on me, but it seems someone else could have served the role more succinctly. I find myself considering the words of Metz early in the first act: “There’s a lot of typing, not much writing.” Try transforming the notion into a description of acting and I’d say we have Hartnett pegged.

Late in the second act, “Resurrecting the Champ” takes a detour that I dare not reveal here. This crucial moment is when the film indeed engages the viewer in its message in ways some might view as manipulative, but I would consider somewhat original and even daring. But it is difficult to navigate territory this thick with meaning and not lose something, so it remains that Rod Lurie is a filmmaker caught up in the flaws of his projects.

“The Contender” is still his finest effort, a film not without complications. “The Last Castle” and “Deterrence” are certainly interesting failures in their own rights. And he’s sure to have a tricky time with the upcoming “Nothing But the Truth,” concerning the Valerie Plame affair. But “Resurrecting the Champ” seems in some ways like another stepping stone for Lurie toward a more cogent and solidified feature excursion, something I have no doubt he will some day accomplish. For now, in many ways, it all just seems like practice.