Best Sports Movies

With last week's release of Seabiscuit, the Palm Beach Post's sports writers come up a list of the best sports movies ever made. Not surprisingly, the list skews towards more recent films, but Gothamist was surprised to see how much we agreed with the selections. We were especially glad that Hoop Dreams, one of the best films ever made, period, made the list, thereby not getting the short shrift for being a documentary. The top ten:

Kevin Costner and Susan Sarandon in Bull Durham 1. Rocky (1976) - Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire.
2. Raging Bull (1980) - Robert DeNiro, Catherine Moriarity.
3. Bull Durham (1988) - Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon.
4. Hoosiers (1986) - Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey.
5. Caddyshack (1980) - Ted Knight, Bill Murray.
6. Brian's Song (1970) - James Caan, Billy Dee Williams.
7. Field of Dreams (1989) - Kevin Costner, James Earl Jones.
8. Hoop Dreams (1994) - Documentary.
9. Breaking Away (1976) - Dennis Quaid, Dennis Christopher.
10. A League of Their Own (1992) - Tom Hanks, Geena Davis.

The rest of the list from the Palm Beach Post, which includes Bend it Like Beckham (60 - it has the potential to unseat A Leauge... as the "girl" sports movie, but as A League is about the all-American past time, perhaps not), The Karate Kid (25), Pat and Mike (51), and yes, even Days of Thunder (96). We also appreciated how the Palm Beach Post went about scoring the votes.

What sports films do you like?

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Jen Chung in Arts & Entertainment on July 29, 2003 8:52 AM

Comments [rss]

steve

RUDY!!!

T. Murray

The best sports movie ever is THE LAST GAME!

www.TheLastGame.com

At least I think so...

tien

this week's sports illustrated has a top 50 list of sports movies. their top 5:

- bull durham

- rocky

- raging bull

- hoop dreams

- slap shot

Unanimous

What about Baseketball? Oh wait, that wasn't even a real sport.

But seriously, Bang the Drum Slowly was a good, sentimental sports movie.

growler

How could they have left out "The Longest Yard"?

And "Brian's Song"?

Though not purely a sports movie, they also left out "That Championship Season."

What about "Body and Soul," which is a boxing movie second only to "Raging Bull"?

They also forgot "The Harder They Fall."

For pure cheese factor, I must include "Ice Castles."

erikka

How could no one metion "Gleaming the Cube"?!?!

Radio

"Love & Basketball" was indeed good, and very sexy. Though I wish someone would make Tyra Banks stop her forays into 'acting'.

"Mean Machine" is a fantastically fun flick from the UK about a footie player who organizes fellow inmates (for 'the big game', natch) behind bars. I highly reccommend it, it stars Vinnie Jones.

lwc

I like Chariots of Fire. Anyone remember that?

Alex

I can't believe they left off "Side Out". Come on! Peter Horton and C. Thomas Howell? Instant classic.

tien

no love for remember the titans? above the rim or ski patrol? well, at least the first one anyway.

Vermillion

Rad?...My god, that finale with the BMX-off at the prom?...Christ, I don't have the words.

Unpossible

Anyone remember RAD?

Greg

Another gem from the back of the list is "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner," with a great Angry Young Man (think British James Dean) performance by Tom Courtenay. The movie is a little slow by today's standards; however, it's worth watching for the ending, which will make you think hard about why people compete and what it means to win.

Jen

Damn, you're so right emjaybee. I love Bring It On. I also love how Cutting Edge is on the list. "Toepick!"

The Natural and North Dallas Forty is on the list, just not the top ten.

Mase

Forgot about "Dogtown ..."! hell, if ice skating is on, skateboarding should be too!

Vermillion

Two good'uns that didn't make the list: Dogtown & Z-Boys and North Shore. What's up with that Palm Beach?

emjaybee

What? No Bring It On? C'mon, cheerleading is a sport!

Or at least as much of a sport as "ice dancing."

Brian's Song still makes me cry.

Jen

Clearly, towards the bottom of the, there are more questionable selections. But I think a lot of the ones in the top quarter/half are pretty good, for one of these lists.

J

While I realize that nobody is able to completly agree with a top 100 list of anything, I have to take issue with a poll that places Rollerball two slots above a classic like Pumping Iron, and thirty-six above Rocky IV. This clearly calls into question their impartiality, and reveals the Palm Beach Post as squarely in the back pocket of "Big Hollywood", rendering any further debate on the "list" moot-- although Lagaan is a great film and I think it should be on there as well.

andrew

i love that they included "Hotdog". Wasn't the full title called "Hotdog:the Movie"? In case we were confused. any "let's save the resort/camp/carwash" by beating the rich snobs in a sport movie that features Prince's "When You Were Mine" is ok with me. And does "Meatballs" count? they have that race at the end and also the camp vs. camp basketball game. IT JUST DOESN'T MATTER! JUST DOESN'T MATTER!