Sports and movies go together like a fine tailored suit and a great tie—they become a perfect fit. People go to the movies to be entertained and leave their real world behind. It gives people a chance to pretend to be someone else. Sports also helps bring people together, no matter what race, religion, or ethnicity they are; sports movies inspire people and help them be entertained.
Sports have become a big business, and not just on the professional level. All one has to do is look at college sports to see how important sports are to the financial wellbeing of a lot of schools. It allows a lot of kids who normally would not be able to afford college to go to college on scholarships, which is why so many young men and women dream of playing sports and making it big. Sports moviesallow people to escape into their dream world.
There’s no shortage of these inspirational movies based on true stories, but if you just want a fun, fictional watch, here are the top 15 sports films for pure entertainment.
15Caddyshack (1980)
Made in 1980,Caddyshackput together a great cast that included Chevy Chase as Ty Webb, a playboy and a golfer. Ted Knight is the arrogant and pompous Judge Smalls, who also plays on the same golf course. Rodney Dangerfield also stars in the movie as Al Czervik who is a new person on the golf club and not a typical quiet member; Dan Resin plays a doctor who usually partners up with Judge Smalls on the golf course. Michael O' Keefe plays Danny Noonan, a caddy working at the golf course to make money for school. Bill Murray plays a groundskeeper who is trying to get rid of a gopher who is destroying the golf course.
Caddyshackis a classic comedy with an iconic ending. We won’t give anything away, but the movie is worth watching.
TheBad News Bearsstep up to the plate at number 14. There have been numerous sequels and even a reboot, but the 1976 original remains the best. The film stars Walter Matthau as Morris Buttermaker, an ex-professional baseball player who is now an alcoholic. He is forced into coaching the worst team in Little League baseball, the Bears. He realizes he needs some talent and recruits a great pitcher, but the team has one problem with new recruit—she’s a girl. But Amanda, played by Tatum O’Neal, can certainly hold her own. He also recruits a guy named Kelly Leake (Jackie Earle Haley) who is a slugger playing the outfield. Buttermaker gets the team turned around and to the championship game, and the ending will leave you feeling good.Bad News Bearsis a great movie because it teaches kids to never give up no matter what it looks like, but do be warned if picking this for family night—there’s a lot of cursing.
13North Dallas Forty (1979)
North Dallas Fortystarring Nick Nolte and Mac Davis tells the tale of an aging receiver (Nolte) who the coaching staff wants to bench. The opening scene garnered a lot of attention because it showed how tough it was for Nolte to just get out of bed due to all the pain his body has been through over the years.
The viewers are drawn into the world of professional football and will surely cheer for Nolte’s character as he plays the game, the only way he knows how. Davis stars as his quarterback and best friend on the team, and both he and Nolte do an excellent job, as does Charles Durning as the coach. If you want to get an honest look at how professional football used to be,North Dallas Fortyis the perfect pick.
12Days of Thunder (1990)
Days of Thunderroars into number 12 with an outstanding cast that includes Tom Cruise as the main character, Nicole Kidman, Robert Duvall and Randy Quaid. The best acting undeniably comes from Duvall, who plays head mechanic Harry, and Michael Rooker as Cole’s rival Rowdy Burns.
The story follows Cole Trickle, a race car driver who has all the talent in the world, but who also is a hot head. He wins some races but winds up getting in a bad accident, and when he is cleared to race by his doctor (Kidman), he finds he is still suffering mentally from the accident. Predictably, there comes a big race where he takes over driving for his rival who was also involved in the accident, and you can guess what happens.
However, what really sold this movie to fans was the dialogue between Cole and Harry and the realistic driving scenes. The movie has one of the best lines in all movie history where the two drivers are going back and forth on the radio because of Cole’s erratic driving; Harry tells his opponent, “No, no, he didn’t slam you, he didn’t bump you, he didn’t nudge you, he rubbed you, and rubbing is racing.” Any fan of racing will know that is a very true statement.
11Slap Shot (1977)
Slap Shotswings in at number 11. Filmed in 1977 and starring Paul Newman and Michael Ontekan, the story focuses on a minor league hockey team with a long history of losing. Newman is not only a player, but he is also the coach who decides that his team needs to become more violent. As the coach, he recruits the Hanson Brothers to be the main thugs of his team and their new violent approach draws the fans back.
There is one scene where they get into a fight with the other team before the game actually gets started. Not only do the fans come back, but they turn their record around and wind up in the championship game, and the ending will truly surprise you.
10Major League (1989)
Major Leaguehad an all-star cast that included Tom Berenger, Charlie Sheen, Wesley Snipes, Corbin Bernsen and Rene Russo. The plot follows a woman named Rachel Phelps, who inherits the baseball team The Cleveland Indians. Her goal with the team is not to win, but to put together the worst team possible, so they would lose and fans would stop coming to the games. The exact opposite takes place as these horrible players bond together and start winning games to the point that they make it to the championship game against the New York Yankees.
All in all,Major Leagueis a very funny movie with some great scenes. Any true baseball fan will love this movie.
Related:Major League Stars Reunite at Sports Convention
9The Longest Yard (1974)
The Longest Yardstarred Burt Reynolds as Paul Wrecking Crewe, Eddie Albert as the Warden and Ed Lauther. The premise sees an ex-pro football player who used to be a quarterback. He is actually kicked out of the league because he got caught cheating by point-shaving. His whole life is turned upside down and he decides to leave his girlfriend… by taking her car, which leads to his arrest and imprisonment. The other inmates do not like him because he had it made, and he blew it all, and he shaved points.
The warden talks to Crewe and wants him to play in a game against the guards with the prisoners, but the game gets too close and at halftime, he tells Crewe to throw the game and lose by 21, or he was going to face charges for a murder he did not commit. The movie is very well done, and you actually feel for Crewe at the (well-thought-out) ending.
8The Natural (1984)
The Naturalsteps up into the batter’s box at number eight. Starring Robert Redford, Robert Duvall, Glen Close, and Kim Basinger,The Naturalfollows the tale of Roy Hobbs (Redford). Hobbs is a natural-born talent in the arena of baseball, and at 19 he is on his way to try out for the Cubs. However, he meets a young lady on the way, and she winds up shooting Hobbs. He lives, but he does not get into baseball for another 16 years.
Eventually, he gets signed to a contract and winds up becoming a star. The team he joined was in last place, but with him hammering the ball, they start to climb until he winds up in a hospital. They take the bullet out of his body and he comes back to play in a playoff game. There are some surprises along the way and the movie is excellent; the ending is a true celebration for all baseball fans.
7Bull Durham (1988)
Bull Durhamis the fourth baseball movie to make the list. Made in 1988, this baseball flick stars Kevin Costner, Tim Robbins, and Susan Sarandon. Costner plays Crash, a catcher who is playing in the minor leagues. Crash knows that his shot of making the big show is closing, and the team he is playing for wants him to mentor a pitcher that signed. The new pitcher is nicknamed Nuke, and while he has a great arm, his head is not where it should be to play in the majors. There is a great scene where Crash gives him a sign for a certain pitch and Nuke shakes him off and Crash tells the batter what pitch is going to be next. After that, Nuke starts to learn to trust Crash and winds up making the show, and his mentor gets a happy ending too.
6The Wrestler (2008)
The Wrestlerflies in at number six from the top rope. Starring Mickey Rourke, Marisa Tomei, and Rachel Evan Wood,The Wrestlerfocuses on Rourke’s character, a professional wrestler who is way past his prime but still has hopes of getting back to the top. He wrestles on the independent circuit and works at a supermarket. After a match. he winds up having a heart attack and is told not to wrestle anymore, so he sadly retires.
He is crazy about Tomei’s character, but as a stripper, she knows there can be no serious relationship. He does try to fix his relationship with his daughter whom he abandoned as a child. Eventually, he does come out of retirement for one more match against his arch-enemy from back in the days when they were in their prime, but the movie does not end the way people would want or think.
Some critics said this was some of Rourke’s best work and Marisa Tomei got nominated for an Oscar for her role, proving that this movie is very good—not just as a sports movie, but as a great drama as well.
