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Posts with tag hoosiers

It's March Madness -- Time for the Best Basketball Movies Ever!

Filed under: Sports », Fandom », Lists »

Sure, you've got Hoosiers, Hoop Dreams and (my personal favorite) White Man Can't Jump, but can you name the top 20 basketball flicks of all time? Not sure I can get past eight -- so major props go out to the folks at Moviefone for coming up with a list of the 20 best basketball films of all time, in honor of March Madness. Ah, the madness of it all; the teams, the brackets, the Cinderella stories. Where would we be in life without the Final Four?

Unfortunately, Air Bud and Eddie didn't make their list, but among the top 20 we have films like The Air Up There (oh, Kevin Bacon can do more than just dance), The Basketball Diaries (drugs and b-ball don't mix so well), He Got Game (he got Denzel, Jordan and Shaq), Space Jam (because we always desperately wanted Bugs Bunny and Michael Jordan to pair up on the big screen) and the recent Semi-Pro (Will Ferrell's 85th sports-related film). Of course there's a whole lot more -- including films I bet you've never heard of -- so make sure to dribble on over to Moviefone and vote for your favorites. Alternatively, feel free to enter your own write-in vote ... in case, ya know, Air Bud just happens to hit you in a personal place.

Move Over 'Rudy'! It's Time for 'Phenom'

Filed under: Drama », Sports », Deals »

Is there anyone out there who doesn't, in some way, love Rudy? The 1993 football film was a feel-good tale of a kid with the pressure of life on his shoulders, whose dream of playing football trumped his athletic skills, struggling grades, and the fact that he was much smaller than the other players. It was also Sean Astin during his early-90s film collection -- a Sgt in Memphis Belle, fiesty Billy Tepper in Toy Soldiers, and harborer of an Encino Man. Le sigh... Anyway, Rudy director David Anspaugh is dipping into the sports once again, with the sport that brought him lots of cred when he helmed Hoosiers.

Variety reports that Screen Gems has tapped him to direct the Charles Murray and Chris Parker-penned Phenom, the basketball movie I briefly mentioned in March when Stomp the Yard actor Chris Brown sign on to star. (The young actor had been trying to get Antoine Fuqua to direct the film, but who can argue with this choice?!) The film focuses on Brown, "a standout high school basketball player who goes pro after the media discovers he's the illegitimate son of the NBA's best player. Father and son are on a collision course as their teams meet on the road to the playoffs." It sounds like it could be a comedy, but this, like Rudy, is a listed as a drama. The production also stars Henry Simmons (Dad?)and Vanessa Williams (Mom?), and will cook up next year after Brown finishes his current concert tour. Are you ready to see Anspaugh's world of sports again?

The 25 Best Sports Movies of All Time

Filed under: Sports », Hold the 'Fone »

Sylvester Stallone and Talia Shire in RockyWhen it comes to sports movies, it's nearly impossible to compare, say, Caddyshack and Rocky. One's a comedy about a golf tournament featuring a demented groundskeeper who talks to gophers; the other's a stirring boxing drama about the triumph of the scrappy underdog. Apples and oranges, right? Golf balls and boxing gloves -- Bill Murray vs. Sylvester Stallone. (I'm pretty sure I know who would win that fight.)

But we at Moviefone are nothing if not courageous (or stupid), so we threw caution to the wind and picked -- and then ranked -- the 25 best sports movies of all time. This was not, I assure you, an easy task. Things were said. Gauntlets were thrown. Heartfelt arguments were offered up as to why Major League is an honest-to-God classic. At one point I thought my colleague Kevin was going to go all Russell Crowe on my ass if we didn't include Cinderella Man on our list ... and don't get me started on our Raging Bull vs. Rocky showdown.

When the dust had settled, we had a list of 25 sports movies we felt were truly great. Of course, there's many a terrific movie we had to leave off -- but that's where the fun begins. Take a look and then let us know: How do you feel about our No. 1 choice? Which of our picks do you agree with, and which ones are you outraged we didn't include? So let the games begin, and remember: Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, and sometimes ... it rains.

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