All - general-discussion: greatest-sports-movies

jwoolcock · Posted September 20, 2011 by jwoolcock

I've been running this around my brain for awhile....my top 5 of sports films, which is actually 6...as follows and not in any particular order:

Rocky
Breaking Away
Remember the Titans
Hoosiers
The Natural
Cinderella Man

Very honorable mention: Requiem for a Heavyweight, Raging Bull, Field of Dreams, Chariots of Fire.

What are yours?

Jim

otto8978 · Posted September 20, 2011 by otto8978

I agree with your list but would also add Rudy to the honorable mention. Also Breaking Away is #1 easily.

Gearbox Racquetball
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Midwest Racquetball Conference

jwoolcock · Posted September 21, 2011 by jwoolcock

Loved Breaking Away!

jwoolcock · Posted September 21, 2011 by jwoolcock

Andrew
You a Cutter?

Jim

mdhills · Posted September 21, 2011 by mdhills

I also liked Breaking Away, but I was a cycling junkie and even liked American Flyers....

I can't believe you guys are leaving out one of the greatest sporting cinema masterpieces ever made: Caddyshack. (nananana, nanananana, ...)

Aside from the afore-mentioned movies, I liked "Bang the Drum Slowly" (don't recall Natural or Field of Dreams too well, although expect they're more popular baseball movies)

Matt "when I was young I was tired and miserable"

jwoolcock
I've been running this around my brain for awhile....my top 5 of sports films, which is actually 6...as follows and not in any particular order:

Rocky
Breaking Away
Remember the Titans
Hoosiers
The Natural
Cinderella Man

Very honorable mention: Requiem for a Heavyweight, Raging Bull, Field of Dreams, Chariots of Fire.

What are yours?

Jim

JCamasto · Posted September 21, 2011 by JCamasto

To hit all the majors: Slapshot. The Longest Yard (original). Bull Durham. Hoop Dreams. Caddyshack.

Tennis anyone?

-Jim

Control Freak · Posted September 21, 2011 by Control Freak

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8WdDmAFcJw

Control Freak · Posted September 21, 2011 by Control Freak

mdhills
don't recall Natural or Field of Dreams too well, although expect they're more popular baseball movies

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88ft_enkr9c

jwoolcock · Posted September 21, 2011 by jwoolcock

Md...Camast....Control

How could I leave out Caddyshack and Slap Shot? I'd heard that the real minor league hockey team in Syracuse had a moment of silence for Paul Newman when he died. I think the Chiefs played Syracuse in the film for the title, as I remember it.

Bang the Drum Slowly was very, very good, as was Bull Durham. I saw the Durham Bulls this summer.....they now play in a new park.

We could probably do a complete list just on baseball movies.

Jim

Control Freak · Posted September 21, 2011 by Control Freak

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfI_HT39eeM

otis29 · Posted September 21, 2011 by otis29

I think "Rocky" is one of the best American movies - well, probably ever. But it's hard for me to classify the original "Rocky" as a "sports" movie. I mean, at the end, he doesn't even listen to the decision on whether he won the fight or not, he's looking for Adrian!

That, my friends, is a love story - not a sports movie.

You could probably say the same about Bull Durham, although outside of Tim Robbins' having the worst throwing motion of any pitcher in cinematic history, the baseball feels pretty authentic. And Raging Bull is an all-time classic, but IMO the boxing was secondary to the personal story.

Not having seen a few listed above (need to add Breaking Away, Slapstick and Brian's Song to my Netflix queue).

My personal list would be as follows:

1. Hoop Dreams
2. Eight Men Out (that's not a porno, CF)
3. Rudy
4. Friday Night Lights
5. Searching for Bobby Fischer (I'm stretching "sports" here, I know. But the back story of the boy and his Dad's obsession with pushing his son and his Mom's efforts to save the kid's humanity at the same time is something many young athletes have probably dealt with in their childhoods.)
6. The Longest Yard (the original)

reid · Posted September 21, 2011 by reid

Happy Gilmore...specially when Bob Barker kicks Happy's a$$

What about Miracle? Has to be one of the greatest Olympic wins of all time.

Hoosiers is sweet too.

NUKES

Because sometimes you're just tired of talking

GEARBOX

Control Freak · Posted September 21, 2011 by Control Freak

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqDiFEXnpuI

Seabiscuit confronts Triple Crown winner War Admiral in 1938

jwoolcock · Posted September 21, 2011 by jwoolcock

Otis
I didn't get too deep into the real meaning of the film. One could argue that Hoosiers is less about sports and more about personal redemption, Cinderella Man is more about sacrifice and triumph over circumstance, Chariots of Fire is more about belief, character and commitment than it is about sports, etc. They all use sports as a vehicle to advance a greater theme. That's what makes them great. If it was just about sports, it'd be just like watching Sports Center.

Lots of other great films have been mentioned by many of you. I haven't seen Hoop Dreams but that's shown up a couple of times here and elsewhere. Friday Night Lights was very impressive as well. I loved Brian's Song and didn't include it only because it was, as I remember it, an originally made-for-TV film (not that is necessarily bad) and not one that did the theatre circuit. I did consider it, however.

No one mentioned The Champ with Jon Voight and Rick (used to be Ricky) Schroeder. Very good and touching film.

Jim

jwoolcock · Posted September 21, 2011 by jwoolcock

P.S. Thanks Control for reminding us about Seabiscuit....I loved that film. The more recent Secretariat was also a gem, but didn't shine as brightly as Seabiscuit in my view.

mdhills · Posted September 22, 2011 by mdhills

I don't get this distinction between "a real" and "not a real" sports movie.

For any movie to be great, it pretty much has to transcend the sports backdrop and touch on human truths (or so siskel and ebert always maintained). Rocky, Breaking Away, Chariots of Fire -- none of these are fundamentally about the sport contest itself. Not even Caddyshack.

If you want pure sport, watch the 1993 World Championships (snippet here, but missing all of the early drama):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXsOR5O5hb0

Control Freak · Posted September 22, 2011 by Control Freak

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1Hp3l2SH6A

mdhills
. . . none of these are fundamentally about the sport contest itself. Not even Caddyshack.

jtmariece · Posted September 22, 2011 by jtmariece

I like Sand Lot :)

jwoolcock · Posted September 22, 2011 by jwoolcock

JM
Sandlot was a good kids' movie as I remember it. Another good baseball film.

Jim

dfleetwood · Posted September 22, 2011 by dfleetwood

Depends on the genre all these are great and many have been left off.

One of the all time great baseball movies every line was a classic the original/first “Major League” not saying it was the greatest just absolutely halarious