1. 'Raging Bull'
Robert De Niro's scorching portrayal of boxer Jake LaMotta as angry young man and still angry (and going to pot) middle-aged man, plus Martin Scorsese's fine eye for the violence men do, are a one-two punch that made this black-and-white drama an instant classic ... and its Best Picture loss one of the biggest Oscar shocks ever.
2 'Rocky'
The 1976 film about the unknown fighter Rocky Balboa who takes the world heavyweight champion, Apollo Creed, through 15 hard rounds wins three Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, plus garners a host of other nominations. Rocky, written and starring Sylvester Stallone, is inspired by the surprising 15-round fight of Bayonne boxer Chuck Wepner against Muhammad Ali in 1975 and spawns five sequels.
3. 'Bull Durham'
A classic romance packed with brilliant dialogue, Bull Durham tells the story of aging minor-league catcher Crash Davis, played by Kevin Costner, and his slow fall from the game, while a young star, Nuke LaRoosh, played by Tim Robbins, makes his rapid rise.
4. 'Hoosiers'
This David-and-Goliath tale of a volatile basketball coach (Gene Hackman) who leads a small Indiana high school team to the state finals has all the makings of a classic: chills-inducing score, superb game sequences, moving pep talk and, of course, the most badass line in sports movie history: "I'll make it."
5. 'The Natural'
Robert Redford plays Roy Hobbs, who joins the New York Knights well beyond his prime to prove to himself he can reach his dreams. The 1984 Barry Levinson adaptation of Bernard Malamud's 1952 novel shows the dark side of baseball in the 1930s - from gambling to shady owners - but keeps a steady eye on the grandeur of the game.
6. 'Caddyshack'
With hilarious turns from Bill Murray as a deranged gopher-hunting, Bob-Marley-blunt-smoking groundskeeper and Chevy Chase as a birdie-and-tequila-shooting womanizer, this might just be one of the most flawless comedies in history -- so it's got that going for it, which is nice.
7. 'Major League'
A group of oddballs are assembled by an unscrupulous owner bent on moving the Indians out of Cleveland - but somehow the pieces come together for a pennant run. Corbin Bernsen, Tom Berenger, Wesley Snipes, Rene Russo and Charlie Sheen star, while Bob Uecker's turn as the team's broadcaster - 'Juuuuuuuuust a bit outside' - is the stuff of water cooler legend.
8. 'Field of Dreams'
Here's something you don't see every day: An average guy ( Kevin Costner), after spying Shoeless Joe Jackson in his cornfield, builds a baseball field where dead ballplayers come back to life. From that bizarre premise springs a moving, warmly funny film about faith, family and baseball that's so perfect, we could've sworn it was heaven.
9. 'Hoop Dreams'
This vivid documentary follows two inner-city basketball prodigies down different paths as they face poverty, crime and injuries in their attempts to become the next Michael Jordan. You're not just watching characters on the screen -- you're rooting like hell for real kids, fighting tremendous odds to make their dreams come true.
10. 'Pride of the Yankees'
"Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the Earth." It's one of the greatest movie quotes of all time, made all the more poignant because the man who said it, Lou Gehrig, had died only the year before. This biopic about the Iron Man, who died at 36 of ALS, is both modest and powerful -- just like Gehrig himself.
11. 'Brian's Song'
Two movies are guaanteed to make men sob: 'Old Yeller' and this made-for-TV biopic about Brian Piccolo, a football player with cancer (James Caan), and his roommate, Hall of Famer Gale Sayers (Billy Dee Williams). It's not just about sports, it's about an extraordinary friendship -- and you'll need a whole box of Kleenex for the end.
12. 'When We Were Kings'
The documentary covering 1974's "Rumble in the Jungle" -- a championship match set up by Don King between Muhammad Ali and then-champ George Foreman -- fulfills the promise of its subject. Ali (stripped of his title for conscientiously objecting to the Vietnam War) is in his way as important as MLK. A king? Certainly.
13. 'Chariots of Fire'
Yeah, so it beat out 'Reds' for the Oscar; but there's more to this film than its underdog status. In portraying the rivalry between two wildly different British runners -- one an upper-class Jew, the other a Scottish missionary -- the film captures the passion to compete that goes beyond money, class or fame. And don't forget that theme song.
14 'Miracle'
It's the greatest upset in sports history, and in 2004 we finally get a movie to bring the Miracle on Ice - the United States' stunning 4-3 victory over the Soviet Union at the 1980 Winter Olympics - to the big screen. Kurt Russell wows as legendary coach Herb Brooks, but we love the decision to cast real hockey players in the role of Mike Eruzione and company.
15. 'Slap Shot'
There's a lot of comedy in hockey: scraggly mullets, toothless grins, Canadian accents. So it's no wonder this 1977 classic scores so many laughs with its ahead-of-its-time raunchiness and blistering vulgarity, mostly courtesy of that sailor mouth Paul Newman. If you don't like it, the Hanson Brothers will make you see otherwise.
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