What do you think is the best sports movie ever

[JohnKleeb]

My pick would be Raging Bull, such an awesome movie. When We Were Kings is a great documentary as well. Saw both of those within the past month since I've been reviving my interest in boxing.

[reyd reid reed]

1. Raging Bull has to be up there...

But you can't discount "The Natural."

Or "Bull Durham."

Or "Pride of the Yankees."

So many good ones...

[JohnKleeb]

4. Ah yeah "The Natural" was good

I liked the Major League movies when I was a kid but they weren't "great", entertaining yeah but not great. I never have seen Bull Durham or Pride of the Yankees though.

[wain]

63. The Natural is a great baseball fantasy movie

I admit to preferring the feel-good movie ending over the book ending.
:)

[reyd reid reed]

65. I haven't read it....I'm gonna have to.

I thought that the movie went just a teeeeeeny bit too far...it's not something I can put my finger on, exactly; I see what they were going for, ending it like they started it, but...

I loved the shot with her standing in that ray of light in the bleachers...just glowing. That image told me the whole thing.

[wain]

68. You may not like the book ending

Bernard Malamud is a wonderful author. Here's a link to a writeup summary of the book (spoiler on ending).

http://www.brothersjudd.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/reviews.detail/book_id/119/Natural.htm

Yes, the movie has some real goosebump moments. I agree the shot of his high school sweetheart standing up at Wrigley Field was tingly followed by the explosive home run smashing the scoreboard clock. There is a great deal of symbolism going on in this scene.

:)

[ComerPerro]

5. Just about any Baseball Movie

Bull Durham, A League of Their Own, Major League, The Natural, Pride of the Yankees..

My dad has this movie that was pretty unknown, I think it aired on HBO or something, its called "61" and is about the home run chase and Roger Maris

[JohnKleeb]

7. I saw some of that one

Though Maris was a bastardly Yankee, I still have a lot of respect for him for what he did and how he handled himself.

[ComerPerro]

9. it kinda focuses on how a media-created rivalry can become real

and how much of Maris' career was overshadowed by, well, being a Yankee...

[GOPisEvil]

2. Hoosiers

:thumbsup:

[ComerPerro]

6. Hoosiers was good, but be sure to see Glory Road

it was a great movie, rented it with my girlfriend a few weeks ago

[Pale Blue Dot]

16. That was the first one I thought of, too.

Pride of the Yankees would also be up there.

But then I thought of the real answer. See below.

[Pale Blue Dot]

18. Field of Dreams

I'm a sappy, sentimental fool. :cry:

[Juffo Wup]

42. gahhhhhhhhhhh

As a Hoosier, I hate that movie.

[Broken_Hero]

83. agreed Hoosiers! n/t

[undeterred]

3. Personal Best

:hi:

[idgiehkt]

23. yah!

me too.

[Mutley]

8. The Professional.

Wait, that wasn't about sports.

I'll take Bull Durham for $800, then, Alex. :hi:

[ComerPerro]

10. Oddly enough, your post made sense to me

[Mutley]

11. Glad I'm not the only one.

:D

[enigmatic]

12. Bang The Drum Slowly (1973)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bang_the_Drum_Slowly

[GalleryGod]

26. " I Know one thing...

I'm never gonna rag on anyone again "

[Placebo]

13. "Angels in the Outfield" and "The Replacements" are tied for me!

:P

...

Seriously though, I like "A League of Their Own", it still does it for me all these years later.

[JohnKleeb]

28. I loved Angels in the Outfield when I was a little

I even had the baseball sheets that those two kids had.

[Placebo]

58. That's so perverted.

You were one sick kid.

[everythingsxen]

14. I liked The Replacements

Necessary Roughness, Major League. A few others, but titles are escaping me atm.

[atomic-fly]

15. A River Runs through it...

[IsIt1984Yet]

17. A League of Their Own or Bull Durham

[lizziegrace]

19. I second both of those! n/t

[texanwitch]

20. I liked Hoosiers.

I would watch basketball if the guys playing would wear the the same tight little shorts the boys had on in the movie.

That is the only reason I watch that movie.

[tinfoilinfor2005]

21. I really liked Mystery Alaska.

So sue me. I'm a sap for feel good flicks.

[MissMillie]

48. good flick

VERY FUNNY!

[Arkham House]

22. Hoop Dreams

[aaronbees]

39. My vote too...

such great stories w/ those two young men; it really captured their dreams and growing pains well, plus the whole crazy social landscape surrounding high school hoops.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

62. Definitely Hoop Dreams

because it showed how the dream of basketball stardom becomes a trap for young ghetto men, inspiring them to throw all their efforts and emotions into sports, while if they devoted as much energy to excelling in academic subjects, they could find an almost guaranteed path to college, since many colleges are actively looking for African-American youth with strong academic potential.

My second choice is Tokyo Olympiad, because it's beautifully filmed and takes place in Japan. (It also shows how much sports such as gymnastics and swimming have changed since 1964.)

[RoyGBiv]

24. The Natural ...

I'm also very fond of _For Love of the Game_, which is based on a novel written by the same guy who wrote _Killer Angels_, the inspiration for the movie _Gettysburg_. (Perhaps that's only relevant to me.)

Close on its heals are _Bull Durham_ and _A League of Their Own_.

At the risk of igniting the soccer flame-fest again, I'll also note that my first, favorite sports movie that still ranks high up there is a seemingly obscure movie called _Victory_ (1981). It gets panned by a lot of people because Sylvester Stallone, who can't play soccer even in the movie, was a major player, but this was before he became what he is. It also has Michael Caine, Pele', and Bobby Moore. The plot revolves around a WWII prisoner of war camp and a group of soccer players put together to play the Nazi guards in an exhibition to prove the superiority of the German race. Caine's character and his cohorts managed to persuade the Germans to allow them to use players who are kept in the "special" section of the camp, i.e. the one reserved for Jews and other "undesireables," and the plan becomes to use the game to make an escape.

But as they practice, they find a new motivation, and at half-time, they have to make a decision ... try to escape or try to achieve the ultimate victory.

I simply love it. This move gave me an appreciation for soccer I would not have had otherwise.

[Common Sense Party]

37. I'll second "Victory." and "Miracle." "Cinderella Man." "Rudy." nt

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

25. Rollerball

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073631/

[Mz Pip]

27. Miracle

Chariots of Fire
Breaking Away
The Natural

Loved all of them.

Mz Pip
:dem:

[Flaxbee]

29. Seabiscuit!

Man I love that movie. Love it love it love it. Not just because of the racing, but I think because of all the backstory, the history, included in the movie. It just really makes the viewer feel and understand the time, how important Seabiscuit was to the nation.

[bridgit]

30. When We Were Kings is awesome...

[WannaBePassingFair]

31. bend like beckham was good.

i liked it very much.

[LA lady]

32. Brian's Song

(the original one) also Field of Dreams and The Natural

[reyd reid reed]

35. Brian's Song makes me cry like a baby every time...

And I've never even seen the whole thing. I always walk in on the same scene and walk out bawling like a baby.

[Catch22Dem]

33. Everybody's All American

Hands down, no contest. The look on Dennis Quaid's face at the end when he thinks all the LSU fans are cheering "the Gray Ghost" when they're actually cheering for the players running onto the field. Heartbreaking!

[GreenTea]

34. North Dallas Forty --- For good fun & sports reality.

[taterguy]

44. Oh Christ they're shooting at cows

Relax they're too drunk to hit anything

God I love that movie

[Frank Cannon]

72. Agreed. ND40 is tops in so many ways.

"TAKE OFF YOUR FUCKIN' HATS! Sorry, monsignor..."

[KitchenWitch]

36. Here are some of my favorites

Remember the Titans
Field of Dreams
Everybody's All American
For the Love of the Game
The Sandlot

And because the Minnesota Twins played a big role

Little Big League

[hfojvt]

38. apparently - Bowling for Columbine

bowling is a sport, right?

It seems to be the only sports related movie in my vast collection. Unless War Games, The Dream Team, Brewster's millions, or Better off dead are considered 'sports' movies.

I have seen Field of Dreams, Hoosiers and Remember the Titans, but did not think enough of them to buy them. I think I saw Brian's song a long time ago but remember very little of it.

[pokerfan]

40. Remember the Titans

"There wasn't a brick thrown through my window," Boone says in his DVD commentary. "It was something far more devastating to any human being than a brick could be. I guess Disney, being the family movie production company that it is, felt that to depict a toilet stool coming through your window was a bit much ... I've never gotten over that incident that particular night, because I could never understand how anybody could feel so bad about another human being as to throw a toilet commode through a window."

http://espn.go.com/page2/s/closer/020808.html



Nurse: Only kin's allowed in here.
Bertier: Alice, are you blind? Don't you see the family resemblance? That's my brother.

[nuxvomica]

47. That get's my vote too

I'm getting all choked up just thinking of that hospital scene. The speech at Gettysburg was great, too. I want to see our next president give a similar one in the same place.

[jpgray]

41. Ben Hur. I love chariot racing. Go Blue!

[Juffo Wup]

43. Bull Durham

n/t

[HughBeaumont]

45. The SANDLOT.

When we Were Kings
Hoop Dreams
Raging Bull
Dodgeball

A new one I'm getting into is Friday Night Lights. True story about high school football in Odessa Texas. Explosions in the Sky (also from the Permian Basin in Odessa) does the music for the movie.

[RedStateShame]

46. Slap Shot

[wildhorses]

49. Cowboy Up...well....what did you expect wildhorses to say...

:shrug:



but for real, what about Hoosiers?

that Gene Hackman is most excellent

[Fox Mulder]

50. The Sandlot.

[YankeyMCC]

51. Slap Shot

[WoodyTobiasJr]

56. Seconded!

[mikeargo]

64. Thirded

With a wonderfully profane Paul Newman

[nosillies]

52. Fever Pitch

But the real Brit version, not the crappy Jimmy Fallon remake.

[MissMillie]

53. Well, I like Seabiscuit, and I like The Natural, and I like

Miracle, and Mystery Alaska

[Jokerman]

54. Major League

Some truly awesome game footage and great dialog:


Rick: My first autograph.
Jake: You're a celebrity now.
Rick: I thought you had to do something GOOD to be a celebrity.
Jake: Not if you do it colorfully.

[ncrainbowgrrl]

66. some more great quotes:

Charlie Donovan: How would you like to manage the Indians this year?
Lou Brown: Gee, I don't know...
Charlie Donovan: What do you mean, you don't know? This is your chance to manage in the big leagues.
Lou Brown: Let me get back to you, will ya, Charlie? I got a guy on the other line asking about some white walls.


Harry Doyle: Remember, fans, Tuesday is Die Hard Night. Free admission for anyone who was actually alive the last time the Indians won the pennant.

Rachel Phelps: Any ideas?
Charlie Donovan: On how we can get worse?
Rachel Phelps: Mmmmm...
Charlie Donovan: How about a series of fines for good play? Maybe a $30,000 bonus to the guy voted Least Valuable Player.

[ChickMagic]

55. Slap shot - hands down

But I'm also very fond of A League of Their Own.

[Monkey see Monkey Do]

57. Shaolin Soccer

(the proper, un-Weinsteined version) for the sheer entertainment value and utter hilarity.

Raging Bull and When We Were Kings are both brilliant -- re the latter, have you read Norman Mailer's book "The Fight"?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0141184140/

[Silver Swan]

59. Did anyone mention "Rudy?"

Makes me cry every time...

[ncrainbowgrrl]

67. Great movie. Ru...dy Ru...dy...Ru...dy!

:hi:

[OhioBlue]

87. me too! I think that is my all time fav sports movie!

[Blue Gardener]

60. Remember the Titans

I don't even like sports, but this was a pretty good movie. Check it out if you haven't seen it yet.

[Va Lefty]

61. Eight Men Out

Hoosiers a close 2nd.

[LostinVA]

71. Forget that one -- it's a good one

[Jokerman]

76. Both filmed in Indiana (What? No "Blue Chips")

Bush Stadium in Indianapolis became Comisky Field for "Eight Men Out" and Hoosiers was shot in a number of places around the state.

Too bad for that dog of a movie "Blue Chips" that shooting a sports movie here doesn't guarantee that the movie will be a winner.

[Rhiannon12866]

69. I'd have to agree with you, John, about "Raging Bull"

Probably the best sports movie ever filmed. But I'd have to say that I preferred "Eight Men Out" and "Field of Dreams," also good movies, since I much prefer baseball to boxing...x(

[LostinVA]

70. Remember the Titans or Brian's Song

[outofbounds]

73. The Longest Yard

The original, it had The Sidney Lanier Bridge from my home town in it. The car chase scene. That bridge has been replaced with a suspension bridge. It was a draw bridge that had been hit by ships 3 times, once in 1972 or 3 and killed several people as their cars plummeted in to the Brunswick River. It was one of the last, if not the last functioning draw bridges in Georgia.

[Cannikin]

74. BASEketball

:P

[xchrom]

75. locker room fever

from the eighties.

[HuskerDU]

77. Just cannot believe that this one hasn't been mentioned.

The Bad News Bears original version!

I love most of the movies mentioned above, but Bad News Bears was the best!

[newcriminal]

78. Breaking away

I love that movie. I was an extra in Hoosiers, some of it was taped in our elementary school gym. So I can name all the kids going down the stairs and a few of them in the stands. Gene Hackman was a very nice down to earth man. He would sit and talk to us whenever there was a break. Barbra Hershey on the other hand was a complete snob.

[blm]

79. Slap Shot

and the really corny side of me always loved It Happens Every Spring.

[kwolf68]

80. A League of Their Own

Hands down for me.

Loved that movie..

[Brigid]

81. Another vote for Bull Durham.

I still love that movie. :)

[JVS]

82. Cobb

[Vidar]

85. Expecting a baseball movie, I was tremendously disappointed by "Cobb".

[mikeargo]

86. Not much baseball...

But a great performance by Tommy Lee Jones

[Zookeeper]

84. Game Over: Kasparov and the Machine.

:+

[MrSlayer]

88. Slap Shot by a mile.

One of the all time greats.

[LostInAnomie]

89. Kingpin

'nuff said.

[chrisau214]

90. It's a tie between Caddyshack and Breaking Away

Two very different movies but each is great.




Chris