Sports movies have always been popular, full of stirring stories of determination, camaraderie, and the competitive spirit. But which ones are like your favourite club winning the Premier League or your hometown hero reigning supreme at Wimbledon, and which are the cinematic equivalent of a racing DNF or wooden spoon award? That's the question we posed to our community of sports fans at Just About Sport, to determine the best sporting movies of all time.
You all delivered in style, with a plethora of nominations for the best sports movies, ranging from classics to lesser-known gems, with a few curveballs thrown in for good measure. Here are the best sports movies of all time, as decided by the Just About Sport community:
Cool Runnings
You're singing it already, aren't you? Cool Runnings is an absolute classic and we're glad to see Retro Stu agrees, so we'll let him take it away:
"Who doesn't love an underdog story? And it doesn't come much more underdog than a Jamaican bobsled team with a disgraced coach played by John Candy coaching them! It had the best blend of humour and emotion, and as far as feel-good sports movies go this has to be up there."
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
Speaking of underdog stories, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, starring Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn as rival gym owners, is one of the best when it comes to comedy. Though dodgeball is a real and competitive sport, the movie takes a few, ah, liberties, featuring stunt outfits and thrown wrenches that real-life players don’t have to worry about. Josh B explains why that doesn’t matter:
"It may not be a biopic or remotely serious but it's just such a good movie. It nails the comedy and feel-good story and the cast do a great job of making sure it's as silly as can be without being so absurd it becomes irrelevant. So many iconic lines to quote from this movie and can be watched over and over again."
Happy Gilmore
Happy Gilmore is another underdog story from beloved - and utterly sports-obsessed - comedian Adam Sandler. Here’s why antibird reckons it stands out among Sandler’s many, many other sports comedies:
"A failed Ice Hockey player with a short fuse takes his skills (and aggression) to the golf course. So many great lines, such as this one between Happy Gilmore and Shooter McGavin:
"'I eat pieces of s*** like you for breakfast!
"'You eat pieces of s*** for breakfast?'"
"And Gilmore's frustration when failing to putt:
"'Just tap it in. Give it a little tappy. Tap tap taparoo…'"
Senna
There are plenty of movies focused on motorsport but Senna is one of the greatest. MURRRAAAAY has nominated it for this list because he explains he "didn't know too much about Ayrton Senna before watching this other than the fact he was a good driver, but after watching the film, you'll realise just how special he was.
"This is Formula One, back when it was a completely different sport to what it is today. Since it's a documentary, most of the footage is real too, which makes it even more engrossing. A must watch."
Rush
Two other phenomenal drivers in Formula One slightly before Ayrton Senna's time were James Hunt and Niki Lauda. The story of their rivalry is dramatised in Rush, a movie FrostySomething says "has a great cast, and does an excellent job replicating the sound and feel of the cars back then". Chris Hemsworth is in fine form as the swarthy, hotheaded Hunt, and the contrast with Daniel Brühl’s cool and collected Lauda is not only a difference in driving philosophy that racing fans will enjoy, but a compelling character study and, ultimately, a touching portrait of mutual respect for everyone else.
Dean also nominated Rush, explaining that the battle between Hunt and Lauda was the rivalry which "defined the sport", so "it's a must watch for anyone with even a passing interest in Formula One".
Supervention
AlexGoesTheWorld opted for a movie about not just an individual player or team, but an entire climate and all the sports within it. Supervention is a 2013 documentary focused on winter sports, specifically "modern freeskiing, free riding, and snowboarding". Winter sports movies are a genre unto themselves, with a deep well of specialist expertise required to capture and edit the perfect footage of these spectacular sports.
And that’s to say nothing of the breathtaking skill of the athletes involved. Alex explains that thanks to the "stellar cast (Aksel Lund Svindal, Jesper Tjader, Tim Durtschi, Terje Håkonsen)", Supervention is "a feast for the eye and a broadener of horizons".
The Replacements
Everyone's favourite bloodthirsty hitman, Keanu Reeves, stars in The Replacements alongside Gene Hackman. The synopsis is that "NFL players are on strike and the teams are forced to look for replacement players to keep the season going". This entry comes from MikeCatDaddy who explains that alongside "one of the best inspirational speeches about success and glory", it also has some "great humour".
All of this is echoed by Just About's very own @Nicole, who reveals she watches it "at least once a year" with her dad, but most people have never heard of it.
Moneyball
Not only a sports movie, but a biopic too, Brad Pitt plays Billy Beane - a real person who revolutionised the game of baseball - in Moneyball. This brilliant biographical drama focuses on Beane, the former manager of the Oakland Athletics, and his assistant Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) as they attempt to "revolutionise player selection using statistical analysis and unconventional methods on a limited budget", explains Roypedd. Their nomination wraps with a quote from Beane:
"It's hard not to be romantic about baseball."
I, Tonya
Tonya Harding was the first American woman to ever land a triple axel in figure skating in the 1991 US Championships, and this film - another biopic - is her story. It also tackles the controversy surrounding her, when her ex-husband orchestrated an attack on Harding's closest competitor, Nancy Kerrigan.
Stella has nominated it as her best sports movie of all time, as she explains "Margot Robbie is an absolute powerhouse of an actor in this and I think this film highlights the turning point of her being respected as an actor and not solely being portrayed as a blonde bombshell."
The Program
Finally, we have Sturmer who has submitted The Program, which focuses on one of the most famous cyclists of all time, Lance Armstrong. It's all about the investigation into Armstrong as a journalist believed he was using banned substances to fuel his seven consecutive Tour de France victories.
Sturmer recommends The Program as it "pictures a difficult life and the consequences of the lies, and overall it goes backstage into the world's greatest cycling race".
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Let us know in the comments if there are any great sports movies that we missed! Some text has been edited for brevity and clarity; you can find the original wording at the bounty post.
Created at . Page last updated at .
