The Love Match sees James Kenny play for football (that's what i'll call it, though it's known as Soccer in U.S) United while his dad Arthur Askey supports rivals City
The Final Test sees Jack Warner (of The Blue Lamp and Dixon Of Dock Green fame) as a International cricketer in the build up to and his final Test Match), only his intellectual son hates the sport and on the same say looks up famous writer Robert Morely, only to discover his hero is a cricket nut. the film also has cameos from real cricketers like the Captain Len Hutton and off-spin bowler Jim Laker.
This Sporting Life was a great kitchen sink drama about a rugby league player Richard Harris lodging with Rachel Roberts and her family. looking at it now it shows the sportsman, particulary rugby league players didn't earn much money, not like today!
Yesterday's Hero saw pop star and football Chairman Paul Nicholas (Keith Lennox in The Jazz Singer) plucking his old hero, but now drunken Ian McShane and putting him into his lower league team in his quest to win the F.A Cup , much to the annoyance of his manager, played by one time pop star the late Adam Faith. one interesting sideline was that later Elton John bought Watford football club and became its Chairman in the clubs most successful period, which included reaching the F.A Cup final.
Charriots Of Fire looked at the lives of five athletes in the build up and during the 1924 Pariss Olyimpic Games, mainly concentrating on Ben Cross' Harold Abrahams and Ian Charlston's Eric Liddell
Champions was a true gripping story of how cancer stricken Bob Champion, as played by John Hurt, recovered and won The Grand National. Edward Woodward played horse trainer Josh Gifford.
tv has had a go a football themes, but like Footballers Wives had more to do what was happening of the pitch than on it. however, i liked The Manageress, which saw Cherie Lungie star as the first (in real life, it still hasn't happened) football manager in the English Football League.
Bend It Like Beckham is the best football movie made to date, in a film about two girl footballers. i wish they'd make a sequel, because the film finished with them going to play professional in the U.S
Best was for the most part a poor inaccurate account of the life of George Best, with the main actor the film's weakest link. the film however, has good performances by Ian Bannon (his last film) as Manager Sir Matt Busby and Linus Roach as famed striker Denis Law
A Shot At Glory is a film starring Michael Keaton as Chairman and Robert Duvall as a Scot's Manager of a lowly Scottish football team, who win th Scottish F.A Cup. One of the team's players is played by Ally Mcoist, the fromer Rangers and Scotland striker, who was a tv personality at the time. now he's Rangers assistant Manager
British sporting movies
British sporting movies
Last edited by stuart.uk on April 20th, 2008, 8:27 am, edited 1 time in total.
Football is what we generally call it with soccer used as a secondary term. though if we called it football in the U.S then it would get confused with American Football
it's interesting to hear John Wayne talk about the birth of American Football in Trouble Along The Way. he said there was a public school soccer game where a player picked the ball up, ran and made a touch down. the same story is told regarding the birth of rugby, which eventaully broke into two fractions rugby league, as was seen in This Sporting Life with 13 players per team, and rugby union where 15 are used.
it's interesting to hear John Wayne talk about the birth of American Football in Trouble Along The Way. he said there was a public school soccer game where a player picked the ball up, ran and made a touch down. the same story is told regarding the birth of rugby, which eventaully broke into two fractions rugby league, as was seen in This Sporting Life with 13 players per team, and rugby union where 15 are used.
I had no idea that 'soccer' was an English word. I've certainly never heard anyone on that side of the pond use it, unless they're pronouncing it in a deliberately sarcastic American accent.
That said, I got to see Bend It Like Beckham again yesterday at the Phoenix Art Museum and saw the word in the name of a shop. It must be out there somewhere. Then again, it was set in the south.
Bend It Like Beckham is a peach. It isn't perfect, but it's an excellent film, and it has far more in it than just sport.
This Sporting Life was stunning, not entirely through yet another stunning performance from Richard Harris. It was fascinating to me to see William Hartnell (the first Dr Who) in a very different role.
I'm no sports fan, so unsurprisingly not no sports movie fan. My favourite bit of sports film is the football match in Kes. Brian Glover is always awesome and he has a field day (no pun intended) with the part. It was far better to see him strut his stuff in Kes than get beaten up by John Wayne in Brannigan.
That said, I got to see Bend It Like Beckham again yesterday at the Phoenix Art Museum and saw the word in the name of a shop. It must be out there somewhere. Then again, it was set in the south.
Bend It Like Beckham is a peach. It isn't perfect, but it's an excellent film, and it has far more in it than just sport.
This Sporting Life was stunning, not entirely through yet another stunning performance from Richard Harris. It was fascinating to me to see William Hartnell (the first Dr Who) in a very different role.
I'm no sports fan, so unsurprisingly not no sports movie fan. My favourite bit of sports film is the football match in Kes. Brian Glover is always awesome and he has a field day (no pun intended) with the part. It was far better to see him strut his stuff in Kes than get beaten up by John Wayne in Brannigan.
Dawn
i think Rachel Roberts was also great in This Sporting Life, as she was in Saturday Night Sunday Morning. she deserved to be a bigger star than she was. it's a pity she ended her life at a still young age.
William Hartnel also did Brighton Rock, The Escape Of The Amythist (possibly his best film as the second billed non commission officer on the ship seiged by The Chinese Liberation Army) and Carry-on Sargeant
i think Rachel Roberts was also great in This Sporting Life, as she was in Saturday Night Sunday Morning. she deserved to be a bigger star than she was. it's a pity she ended her life at a still young age.
William Hartnel also did Brighton Rock, The Escape Of The Amythist (possibly his best film as the second billed non commission officer on the ship seiged by The Chinese Liberation Army) and Carry-on Sargeant