From the small high school fields of America's countryside to the bright lights of some of the world's biggest stadiums, football has become a part of the fabric of sports culture. While the football season may technically run from September to February, the reality is that the game never stops. Busy off-seasons led by superstar player trades, free agent signings, and the annual draft have ensured that the sports world never stops talking about football.
Capturing the passion and popularity of football is something Hollywood has always endeavored to do. However, this is no easy task for any filmmaker. Making the football action scenes realistic, while portraying characters who are relatable and easy to cheer for is problematic in both conception and execution. Football movies have the challenge of trying to appeal to a wider audience in order to achieve financial success but remain true to the spirit of the hardcore football fan.
While this is no easy task, here are nine essential football films that blend together the realities of the game with a great time at the movies.
Any Given Sunday (1999)
Oliver Stone's exposé of professional football has everything a football fan would want: the young quarterback ready to take the next step in his career, a coach battling his inner demons while trying to control a team, and an owner who is more concerned with getting their way than getting wins. Led by a standout over-acting performance from the legendary Al Pacino, Any Given Sunday is not as realistic as Stone wants you to believe but its attempt to get close is definitely entertaining in an eye-popping kind of way. One of the true treasures of the movie is the depth of the cast. The ensemble features Dennis Quaid, Jaime Foxx, Cameron Diaz, as well as a host of former NFL legends.
Remember the Titans (2000)
One of the archetypes of any football movie is the motivational coach who, through sharp words, a tough eye, and a kind heart, is able to change the lives of the young men he is coaching. Avoiding turning this role into a clichéd and tiresome performance is a challenge; casting Denzel Washington in the coach role is a sure-fire way to meet set challenge. Washington dominates the screen from beginning to end as real-life coach Herman Boone, leading the inspirational story of the integration of T.C. Williams high school in 1971 Virginia. While the historical accuracy of the film can be questioned, its heart cannot. The film delves more into the relationships between the players than it does with football scenes, but the young actors are believable and easy to cheer for. Plus, be on the lookout for an early Ryan Gosling.
The Longest Yard (1974)
The oldest film on the list, The Longest Yard is in many ways a product of its 1970s time, with a grittier and harsher portrayal of the game. Burt Reynolds plays Paul Crewe, a quarterback turned inmate who leads his fellow prisoners in the game of their lives against a sadistic warden and guards. Reynolds is the key to the film, and he is in his prime here, able to pull off the athletic feats and rebellious toughness needed for both sides of the role. While the film is original in nature it has a lot of ties to a real-life soccer game between German soldiers and Ukrainian prisoners during World War II, known as the Death Match. The film has also been remade three times, including recently with Adam Sandler. However, it's the original that stands the test of time thanks to Reynolds' charismatic and believable performance.
Friday Night Lights (2004)
Directed by Peter Berg and based on H.G. Bissinger's real-life account of high school football life in the small town of Odessa, Texas, Friday Night Lights is perhaps the most authentic football movie ever made. Overshadowed today by the TV series of the same name (but with very different tones), the film is led by Billy Bob Thornton as the head coach of the Permian High Panthers who is trying to balance the immense pressure of winning with the reality that this is a high school team. What still permeates this film almost 20 years later is that, while a film about football, it is also very much about a small town in Texas that is suffering. In many ways, the people of Odessa are living and dying with the success and failures of the team. This is a movie about people, and how quickly they can get lost in the despair of the past, while a new generation does their best to not get lost in the football shuffle.
Rudy (1993)
Starring Sean Astin as the title character, Rudy is in many ways not only the most popular football movie ever made but can be looked at as the quintessential sports movie. Rudy is not a movie that is going to capture its audience with its examination of technical aspects of the game. This is a film that is all about the love and passion for football and the familial roots the sport has for so many people. Dreaming of one day playing for the University of Notre Dame, Rudy shows how heart and determination can carry someone to the fulfillment of their dreams. The film has many memorable and uplifting moments, but the jersey scene involving his teammates and new head coach will always be remembered as the epitome of your team having your back.
Undefeated (2011)
While other movies deal with real-life stories and situations, Undefeated is the only documentary on the list. The film follows the trials and tribulations of three underprivileged football players and their volunteer coach in a small town in Memphis looking to create a better life for themselves and their families. Produced by Sean 'P.Diddy' Combs, the film won the Academy Award for best documentary in 2011. What makes the film so powerful is that you are transported to a world where football is the only safe place for young men. In a sport where so much physical harm can happen in an instant, the real damage in this film is the world the players are trying to navigate through, off the field.
All the Right Moves (1983)
In one of his earliest roles, Tom Cruise plays Stefen Djordjevic, a star defensive player for his high school team who looks at football as the only opportunity he has to leave his small town. Like other movies on the list, the film is an examination of small-town life, this time a dying mill town in Pennsylvania, and the aspirations people have to escape it. The uniqueness of the film comes from the collision between Cruise's character and the team's head coach, played by Craig T. Nelson. Both are trying to follow their dreams, both are trying not to get to swallowed by their role in the small town, and both do not realize that they are on the same side of the battle.
The Program (1993)
From the story to the clothes to the cast, The Program is the epitome of the 90s football movie. Featuring a collection of the decade's most recognizable actors including a young Halle Berry, the movie follows the exploits of the fictional Eastern State University and their battle-tested coach, played by screen icon James Caan. The Program is an interesting watch because there are not many football films that examine the big-time college experience and all the potential corruption that is tied to these money-making football programs. While most football films tend to focus on the inspirational side of the game, The Program is unrelenting in its portrayal of student-athletes as pawns in the corporate college football game.
Varsity Blues (1999)
Part teen movie, part football movie, the MTV produced Varsity Blues takes all the tropes of the sports movie and turns it up another notch. Led by James Van Der Beek and Paul Walker, the movie is a revolt against the realities of high school football. While everyone in a small Texas city lives and breathes the results of the West Canaan Coyotes, the players are just trying to make the most of their high school years and actually have fun, on and off the field. While the film is more known for its whip cream bikini sundae scene, a definite relic of its time, the pure energy of the movie is infectious. None of the players take football nearly as seriously as anyone else in the film and the audience is rewarded by being a part of their coming-of-age journey. The student-athletes are battling the football-obsessed adults in an attempt to find themselves as people outside the football field - something unimaginable for the over-30 population.