The Art of a Sports Movie

Entertainment to most sports fans comes in the form of ball games. Therefore, typical fanatics lack such enthusiasm for celebrities off the pitch. Yet when Hollywood glams up the games people love and add a compelling storyline, magic is made.

The most recent addition to sports movie genre is Moneyballstarring Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill. It’s based off the true story of Oakland A’s manager, Billy Beane (Pitt) putting together a team on a budget by using computer analytics to draft his players. The movie is set to come out September 23, and is based off the critically acclaimed book under the same name. But can it hang in the hallowed field of sports films alongside greats likes Field of Dreamsor Raging Bull?

My all time favorite sports flick, which still has yet to be topped, is Remember the Titans. That “who ah feel good” gets me every time. Whether it’s the team’s wailing “Ain’t No Mountain High” or the friendship that transpires between hardheaded Coach Boone and even-keeled Coach Yoast, I feel a particular kinship to this film.

What makes sports fans uncompromising to films portraying athletics is that it resonates with them on such a higher level than any drama or chick flick. Sports fans are unrelenting, they feel as though they are a member of that team and take any mention of said team, personally. 

I know that if I could one day make that revered run through Gettysburg cemetery like the Titans portrayed, I would forever be in awe. Let’s wait and see if Moneyball can live up to the hype and spectacle the greatest sports movies have created.