Top 5 Sports Movies

Asking me to write an article about the top 5 sports films is like asking John Wayne to show us how to bake a cake. I like sports but I feel there are more important things to watch; like "Knit and Crochet Today". I wasn't asked to write this article. I chose to write it. Therein lies the difference. My two daughters like football and even understand the rules of play. When they were little, Dan would watch football with them . They learned the rules of football so well that I think they should coach it; especially Rachel. She definitely knows how the game should be played and isn't afraid to give her opinion.

I do watch movies about sports and I like them. I think the reason I like them is because I'm not having to sit and watch the sport itself; there is also a story line. I realize that this is my list of the top 5 sports movies; based on how much I like them and, like with anything else, my opinions are strictly my own and don't necessarily reflect anyone else's thoughts and ideas.

When I think of sports movies, the first one that popped into my head is "Brian's Song." According to www.imdb.com (the internet movie data base website.) the movie was made in 1971 and was a made for TV movie. I was surprised that it was a made for TV because I thought it had been released to theater's. However, I still like it, even if it was made for TV. The movie was re-made in 2001. "Brian's Song" is the story about Brian Piccolo's battle with cancer and his friendship with Gayle Sayers. James Caan and Billy Dee Williams were in the original movie and must have acted so well that all these years later, I remember the name.

Another movie I liked is 1984's "The Natural" with Robert Redford. The summary on imdb.com is: An unknown middle-aged batter named Roy Hobbs with a mysterious past appears out of nowhere to take a losing 1930s baseball team to the top of the league in this magical sports fantasy. With the aid of a bat cut from a lightning struck tree, Hobbs lives the fame he should have had earlier when, as a rising pitcher, he is inexplicably shot by a young woman. Written by Keith Loh {loh@sfu.ca}

Another baseball movie that I like is "Major League" which was made in 1989. In one of the scenes Jake Taylor (played by Tom Berenger) is asked how much a ball player earns in a year and he replies that he makes the league minimum. I had always wondered how much money that is. Again, at imdb.com the answer comes up as a bit of trivia in the movie:

• In the scene where Jake invades Lynn's party, one of the guests asks how much Jake makes in the Majors. He replies, "I make the league minimum." At the time(1989) the MLB salary minimum was $62,500. Average household income in 1990 is roughly $30,000. So he was making a very respectable double the average household income.

A football movie I have enjoyed and never get tired of watching is "The Replacements" which was made in 2000. Keanu Reeves plays quarterback of a team based on the 1987 professional football players' strike. Gene Hackman plays the coach of the team, Jack Warden is the owner, Brett Cullen is the All-Pro quarterback that goes on strike and Keanu Reeves is the "scab" who replaces the star QB.

And, Gene Hackman also played in "Hoosiers" a basketball movie which was made in 1986. According to imdb.com this movieis based on a true story. One of the odd things I noticed about this movie is how many "H's" there are in this movie: Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey, the announcer's name is Hilliard Gates, the town's name is Hickory, the town drunk is played by Dennis Hopper, Indiana is known as the Hoosier state, the team name is the Huskers, Rade Butcher was played by Steve Hollar. Interesting, very interesting.

I also like "We Are Marshall"--"Field of Dreams"--"Angels in the Outfield"--"Rocky"--"The Longest Yard" (the oldest one)--"Remember the Titans". All of these movies appeal to me, there isn't any particular order to them.