Hoop Dreams 20 years later

[CTWarrior]

Some recent ones I've really liked - The Fighter (great performance by Christian Bale), Moneyball and Win Win (an indie film with Paul Giamatti as a struggling lawyer/wrestling coach). Not as recent but also worth a look - The Wrestler (Mickey Rourke's comeback), Seabiscuit, Friday Night Lights and Tin Cup.

All good ones.  I made my original list off the top of my head while in a boring conference call.  I'm sure I missed some others, too.  Moneyball was very different from the book (which I loved), but liked it very much anyway.  I've seen bits and pieces of Win Win, but I need to make a point of watching it start to finish.

[CTWarrior]

It's a Disney movie. Of course it's formulaic. And there's nothing wrong with that. It was never positioned as anything more than feel good entertainment. Not everything needs to be Bergman or Kurosawa. You can't eat steak every meal and every culture has developed dessert cuisine for a reason.

I agree with everything you say, but it didn't work for me even on that simple level.  Anyway, while I may say a centerfielder or a point guard stinks, I don't normally comment about entertainment in thsoe terms because just because I don't like something, it doesn't mean it isn't good.  It just means I don't like it.

[brandx]

Any Kevin Costner baseball movie is good. Bull Durham and For the Love of the Game were best. Easy to see that he played some ball in his day. Tim Robbins, on the other hand, had to be one of the last guys picked when choosing teams as a kid.

All I ask for (besides a good story) is that the actors actually played ball before. Nothing puts an end to a movie quicker for me than to watch a baseball scene and have an actor throwing like a little girl or obviously playing baseball for the 1st time. It only takes seeing one throw or one catch to see it. No camera angle can hide a non-athlete. Not even when they basically just show his face as he is pitching.

[real chili 83]

My all time favorite sports movie is Rudy

Rudy turned out to be your typical ND alum in real life.

[Lennys Tap]

All good ones.  I made my original list off the top of my head while in a boring conference call.  I'm sure I missed some others, too.  Moneyball was very different from the book (which I loved), but liked it very much anyway.  I've seen bits and pieces of Win Win, but I need to make a point of watching it start to finish.

Like you, I loved Moneyball (the book). Didn't see a movie there, though. I was pleasantly surprised.

[Lennys Tap]

Just remembered another good one I saw recently - 42 (the Jackie Robinson story) - very well done, I thought.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

Just remembered another good one I saw recently - 42 (the Jackie Robinson story) - very well done, I thought.

That was good.  My wife even liked that one.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

Comments like "No way they pitch to Geena Davis with first base open and Marla Hooch off on her honeymoon!"  

This is the funniest thing I've read in a while.

We need more Marla Hooch takes!!!

[keefe]

The Natural

One of my favorites, regardless of genre. Written by an excellent writer, too. I enjoy reading Malamud.

[Lennys Tap]

One of my favorites, regardless of genre. Written by an excellent writer, too. I enjoy reading Malamud.

As Digger might say, Bernard could flat out write. The Fixer was haunting but more than a little depressing.

[CTWarrior]

As Digger might say, Bernard could flat out write. The Fixer was haunting but more than a little depressing.

Same was true of the Natural, though not to the same extent, snd the movie turned that on its ear anyway.  Loved The Fixer, too. 

As far as the movie, Robert Redford was surprisingly convincing as a left hander power hitter.  Beautiful swing.

[MU82]

Some recent ones I've really liked - The Fighter (great performance by Christian Bale), Moneyball and Win Win (an indie film with Paul Giamatti as a struggling lawyer/wrestling coach). Not as recent but also worth a look - The Wrestler (Mickey Rourke's comeback), Seabiscuit, Friday Night Lights and Tin Cup.

The Wrestler! Yes!

You know, the top 10 I listed is from a few years ago and as I was typing it in here I was trying to think if there were any in the last 5 years that belonged in it. I thought about Seabiscuit and The Fighter and Moneyball and didn't think any quite broke in there. But I loved The Wrestler and thought it should have won the Oscar in 2008 but it wasn't even nominated. And everybody, even Sean Penn, knows Rourke should have won it for Best Actor.

The debate here might be if pro wrestling qualifies as a subject for a sports movie, but what the hell!

[Eldon]

The Wrestler! Yes!

You know, the top 10 I listed is from a few years ago and as I was typing it in here I was trying to think if there were any in the last 5 years that belonged in it. I thought about Seabiscuit and The Fighter and Moneyball and didn't think any quite broke in there. But I loved The Wrestler and thought it should have won the Oscar in 2008 but it wasn't even nominated. And everybody, even Sean Penn, knows Rourke should have won it for Best Actor.

The debate here might be if pro wrestling qualifies as a subject for a sports movie, but what the hell!

Penn was third at best that year. Should have been Rourke or Bradd Pitt. I honestly think the Academy went with Penn because of the theme of his film and the whole Prop 8 thing going down at the time.

[keefe]

The Wrestler!

Rourke

[Skitch]

I love Remember the Titans if only for the fact that Julius and Gary grew up to become Avon Barksdale and Opie Winston

[MU82]

I love Remember the Titans if only for the fact that Julius and Gary grew up to become Avon Barksdale and Opie Winston

Nice factoid.

I love me some Avon and Opie!

[WI inferiority Complexes]

The debate here might be if pro wrestling qualifies as a subject for a sports movie, but what the hell!

If the answer is "yes," then the best sports movie of all time may be No Holds Barred.

[🏀]

Lincoln Hawk would like a word with all these sports movies.

[🏀]

My short list of best sports movies:

Raging Bull
Slap Shot
Beer League
The Huster
Hoop Dreams
Point Break
The Wrestler
Jerry Maguire
Bill Durham
This Sporting Life
Tin Cup
Poolhall Junkies
A League of Their Own
Hoosiers
Rocky
Rocky IV
Million Dollar Baby

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Baseketball anyone?

[CTWarrior]

For those of you that don't think the announcers read the message boards, the play by play guy gave his 5 favorite sports movies in the first half:

Hoosiers
Rocky
The Natural
Rudy
The Longest Yard

[CTWarrior]

My short list of best sports movies:

Million Dollar Baby

I completely forgot about this one!  Tremendous movie.  Hilary Swank's performance in that movie is as good as I have ever seen in any movie.  Can you imagine anyone else playing that part nearly as well?

SPOILER ALERT -  In real life she would have been the winner of her last fight by DQ.  Actually saw the exact scenario in a real fight.