A sports film is a

film genre A film genre is a stylistic or thematic category for motion pictures based on similarities either in the narrative elements, aesthetic approach, or the emotional response to the film. Drawing heavily from the theories of literary-genre cri ...

in which any particular

sport Sport pertains to any form of Competition, competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and Skill, skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to specta ...

plays a prominent role in the film's plot or acts as its central

theme Theme or themes may refer to: * Theme (arts), the unifying subject or idea of the type of visual work * Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos * Theme (computing), a custom graphical ...

. It is a production in which a sport, sporting event,

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

(and their sport), or follower of sport (and the sport they follow) are prominently featured, and which depend on sport to a significant degree for their plot motivation or resolution. Despite this, sport is ultimately rarely the central concern of such films and sport performs primarily an allegorical role. Furthermore,

sports fan A fan or fanatic, sometimes also termed an aficionado or enthusiast, is a person who exhibits strong interest or admiration for something or somebody, such as a celebrity, a sport, a sports team, a genre, a politician, a book, a movie, a vid ...

s are not necessarily the target demographic in such movies, but sports fans tend to maintain high following and esteem for such movies.

Subgenres

Several sub-categories of sports films can be identified, although the delineations between these subgenres, much as in live action, are somewhat fluid. The most common sports subgenres depicted in movies are sports drama and sports comedy. Both categories typically employ playground settings, match, game creatures and other elements commonly associated with biological stories. Sports films tend to feature a more richly developed sport world, and may also be more player-oriented or thematically complex. Often, they feature a hero of adventure origins and a clear distinction between loss and victory set against each other in a play time struggle. Thematically, the story is often one of "our team" versus "their team"; their team will always try to win, and our team will show the world that they deserve recognition or redemption; the story does not always have to involve a team. The story could also be about an individual athlete or the story could focus on an individual playing on a team.

Sports comedy

Sports comedy combines the sports film genre with

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

elements. Traditionally, these films heavily rely on slapstick humor and very physical comedy, such as someone getting hurt in a comical way. A typical storyline may revolve around someone losing sight of the sport they are playing and trying to get back into it. Examples and staples of the genre include ''

The Waterboy ''The Waterboy'' is a 1998 American sports comedy film directed by Frank Coraci. It was written by Adam Sandler as well as Tim Herlihy and produced by Robert Simonds and Jack Giarraputo. Sandler also stars as the title character while Kathy Bates ...

'', ''The Longest Yard'', '' Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby'', and ''

Blades of Glory ''Blades of Glory'' is a 2007 American sports comedy film directed by Will Speck and Josh Gordon, written by Jeff Cox, Craig Cox, John Altschuler and Dave Krinsky, and starring Will Ferrell and Jon Heder with Will Arnett, Amy Poehler, William Fich ...

''.

Sports drama

Sports drama combines the sports film genre with drama film elements. These films rely on conflict, usually revolving around an athlete or a team. These dramas can further be broken up into categories, some movies focusing on race such as ''42'' (2013), or focusing on a specific moment in history like I, Tonya (2018). Examples of this overall genre/type include: '' Body and Soul'' (1947), ''

The Hustler ''The Hustler'' is a 1961 American sports romantic drama film directed by Robert Rossen from Walter Tevis's 1959 novel of the same name, adapted by Rossen and Sidney Carroll. It tells the story of small-time pool hustler "Fast Eddie" Felson a ...

'' (1961), ''

Rocky ''Rocky'' is a 1976 American sports drama film directed by John G. Avildsen and written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. It is the first installment in the ''Rocky'' franchise and stars Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, and Burgess M ...

'' (1976), '' Hoosiers'' (1986), ''

Remember the Titans ''Remember the Titans'' is a 2000 American biographical sports film produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Boaz Yakin. The screenplay, written by Gregory Allen Howard, is based on the true story of coach Herman Boone, portrayed by Denzel W ...

'' (2000), ''

Moneyball ''Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game'' is a book by Michael Lewis, published in 2003, about the Oakland Athletics baseball team and its general manager Billy Beane. Its focus is the team's analytical, evidence-based, sabermetric approa ...

'' (2011), ''

Ford v Ferrari ''Ford v Ferrari'' (titled ''Le Mans '66'' in some European countries) is a 2019 American sports drama film directed by James Mangold and written by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, and Jason Keller. It stars Matt Damon and Christian B ...

'' (2019) and the '' Goal!'' trilogy.

Award Winning Movies

There have been numerous sports movies that have become award winning phenomenons. Several movies have been nominated for and won the highest award of Best Picture at the Academy Awards, including ''The Blind Side'' (2009), ''Rocky'' (1976), and ''Million Dollar Baby'' (2004). Other movies that received awards of a high caliber are ''Jerry Maguire'' (Best Supporting Actor, 1996), ''Bill Durham'' (Best Original Screenplay, 1988), and ''The Karate Kid'' (Best Supporting Actor, 1984). Regardless of the awards that these sports films have been granted, it is clear that this genre is loved by many.

List of sports films

Highest-grossing sports films

References

*Friedman, Lester D. (2020) ''Sports Movies'' Rutgers University Press ISBN 9780813599885 *(fr) Julien Camy and Gérard Camy, ed. Du Bailli de Suffren (2016) ''Sport&Cinéma'' (1200 films, 60 sports, 80 interviews) *Edgington, Erskine, Welsh (2010) ''Encyclopedia of Sports Films'' Scarecrow Press ISBN 9780810876538 *Allen & Hershenson (1996) ''Sports Movie Posters'' ISBN 9781887893152 Film genres {{film-genre-stub