WEEKEND's 20 best sports movies of all time

1. “Raging Bull” (1980)
Jake LaMotta would take a beating in the boxing ring to combat his devastating inner turmoil of jealousy, anxiety and an unbridled craving for abuse and conflict. Martin Scorsese’s “Raging Bull” is the most elegant, visceral, brutal and stylish sports movie ever made, and it’s all to depict the tragic beauty of a self-beaten soul.

2. “Hoosiers” (1986)
Although no one is sure what a Hoosier is, this movie embodies everything good about our state. From Gene Hackman speeches to last-second shots, “Hoosiers” will forever be a favorite son to those of us that call Indiana home.

3. “Field of Dreams” (1989)
The tagline should actually be “If you watch it, tears will come.” Perhaps the greatest baseball movie ever made, “Field of Dreams” will leave you thinking about much more than just a game.

4. “Rocky” (1976)
In many ways the forerunner to the modern sports underdog film, the timeless story of a low-level Philadelphia boxer who gets a shot at the championship remains powerful and heartwarming, thanks to Sylvester Stallone’s all-in portrayal of a simple man trying to seize the opportunity of a lifetime.

5. “Remember the Titans” (2000)
Denzel Washington plays the perfect tough-love coach in this heartwarming story of integration and a high school football team in Virginia in 1971.

6. “Million Dollar Baby” (2004)
The simple message of being able to find a champion in anyone with real heart speaks to how a film can overcome, with grace and tenderness, even the worst melodrama. Clint Eastwood’s marvelously acted boxing movie “Million Dollar Baby” does just that and becomes a lovely and touching masterpiece.

7. “Breaking Away” (1979)
Putting “Breaking Away” on a list of top sports movies to Bloomington viewers could be considered pandering, but even without the local connection, it’s one of the top cycling movies out there. Complete with us versus them rivalries, a stunning last-minute comeback and even Dennis Quaid in jorts, it should not be ignored by sports fans.

8. “The Wrestler” (2008)
Randy “The Ram” Robinson puts himself through so much abuse in the wrestling ring, but outside it is where he feels most hurt. Darren Aronofsky’s gritty, yet tender drama “The Wrestler” finds both pain and love through the violence of the sport, and Mickey Rourke’s tortured performance is utterly heartwarming.

9. “Chariots of Fire” (1981)
Running on the beach to the operatic, electronic score by Vangelis is now a cliche, but it fits this British period piece’s victorious feel. “Chariots of Fire” is the best, if one of the few, movies about running ever made, and there’s something riveting about a sprint through the Cambridge courtyard.

10. “Space Jam” (1996)
How could a movie with Michael Jordan, Wayne Knight, Bill Murray and the Looney Tunes not be a rollicking good time? Tailor-made to be nostalgic for all generations, “Space Jam” is a goofy, quintessential ’90s retelling of Jordan’s return from retirement.

11. “Moneyball” (2011)
This Brad Pitt-starring film from “Capote” director Bennett Miller is only a baseball movie inasmuch as “The Social Network” is a Facebook movie. The story of Oakland Athletics General Manager Billy Beane’s unorthodox approach to scouting players is an essential look inside a brilliant, iconoclastic mind.

12. “Caddyshack” (1980)
Basically an excuse to put Bill Murray, Chevy Chase and Rodney Dangerfield on screen together that happens to be set at a golf course, “Caddyshack” mercilessly roasts country-club culture through a combination of one-liners, gopher puppets and general ridiculousness.

13. “Rudy” (1993)
How can you not root for the little guy who once proclaimed, “Goonies never say die”? As far as unlikely hero stories go, “Rudy” is as good as it gets. Rudy! Rudy! Rudy!

14. “The Pride of the Yankees” (1942)
This film about the life and career of Lou Gehrig could be the very definition of the word “melodrama.” That’s no strike against it, though. Gary Cooper’s poignant depiction of a common man who rose to the highest level of America’s pastime only to have it stripped away early by a terminal illness is heart-wrenching and brilliant, and his recreation of Gehrig’s “luckiest man on the face of the earth” speech is one of the finest monologues in classic cinema.

15. “Hoop Dreams” (1994)
When Steve James began gathering footage of Chicago high school basketball stars William Gates and Arthur Agee for a half-hour PBS special, he had no idea it would result in a 171-minute documentary. It’s a good thing it did — the film was hailed by Roger Ebert as “the great American documentary” and has been accepted into the National Film Registry.

16. “Slap Shot” (1977)
Paul Newman is the most lovable actor-turned-salad-dressing-peddler of all time, so it’s no wonder his turn as a rough-and-tumble player-coach for a minor league hockey team in this classic comedy is as endearing as it is enduring.

17. “Friday Night Lights” (2004)
More so than the TV show it spawned, this adaptation of H.G. Bissinger’s classic book offers the most genuine depiction of Texas high school football seen on film as it chronicles the 1988 Odessa Permian Panthers and the undersized underdog team’s struggles to raise the spirits of their downtrodden, football-obsessed town.

18. “A League of Their Own” (1992)
Madonna, the ultimate girl power symbol, takes on the world of professional baseball in this classic American tale of the struggle for the first female league.

19. “Cinderella Man” (2005)
This is the story of Great Depression-era  boxer James J. Braddock and how the supposedly washed-up fighter lifted America’s spirits with his surprise run to the heavyweight title. Russell Crowe is solid as Braddock but outshined by Paul Giamatti’s timeless performance as Joe Gould, the boxer’s manager.

20. “The Sandlot” (1993)
This all-time favorite epitomized the tradition of backyard baseball. “You’re killin’ me, Smalls” will forever be ingrained in our daily lexicon, and we will always “fear The Beast.”