Fans and critics vote on the Best Football Movies of All Time...

I’m biased in favor of Friday Night Lights as the best football movie ever made by Hollywood… but aside from Hollywood, even better is the current documentary on the NFL Channel about high school football rivalries around the country…tonight’s production about the high school teams in the Everglades section of Florida was incredibly moving…if you ever get to see the documentary “The Muck Bowl” about these Florida teams and the kids who play in it, you won’t soon forget the impact of the reality of football in the oppressed rural areas of this nation…

Photo above:

Friday Night Lights (Universal Studios)

Permian Panthers Brian Chavez (Jay Hernandez), left, Mike Winchell (Lucas Black) and Boobie Miles (Derek Luke) take the field for the pre-game coin toss in 2004’s “Friday Night Lights” … Peter Berg directed from H.G. “Buzz” Bissinger’s 1988 book about the Permian High School team in Odessa, Texas. Billy Bob Thornton played coach Gary Gaines.

Each of us tries to fill in the vacuum left by the end of the 2010 NFL season in our own way. Me? First I made sure I booked tickets to take the wife to see “Jersey Boys” at the Hippodrome in Baltimore to cover the Valentine’s Day priority… Great cast and ensemble performance…but when we got home, all I could think of was, “Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons were great, but I could really use some Notre Dame and the Four Horsemen about now…”

I miss football. Live football is best. But times like these call for Hollywood’s relief “pitchers”…

Sports movies are among the most difficult film genres to sell. Problem one is getting the realism down to the most minute detail. Problem two is getting the history right. Problem three is getting directors, actors and extras who know enough about the sport and the history to get the action and the nuance right…

Here’s a current list of the Top 56 Football Movies ever made by Hollywood, as compiled by SportsInMovies.com, which uses a formula that combines the opinions of their users and the opinions of other reliable media sources, in a total ranking system of 10 being the top possible ranking, and 1 the lowest…. Many have argued over the top football movies, but SportsInMovies.com takes pride in carefully monitoring user ratings and combining them with the ratings of movie critics:

The Blind Side (2009) – 9.13
Remember the Titans (2000) – 9.02
Rudy (1993) – 8.97
Brian’s Song (1971) – 8.96
Friday Night Lights (2004) – 8.90
We Are Marshall (2006) – 8.89
Brian’s Song (2002) – 8.73
Express, The (2008) – 8.72
Invincible (2006) – 8.71
Program, The (1993) – 8.64
Gridiron Gang (2006) – 8.59
Radio (2003) – 8.52
Any Given Sunday (1999) – 8.50
Everybody’s All-American (1988) – 8.42
Horse Feathers (1932) – 8.40
Fighting Back (1980) – 8.36
Replacements, The (2000) – 8.31
Waterboy (1998) – 8.19
Necessary Roughness (1991) – 8.17
Junction Boys, The (2002) – 8.11
Varsity Blues (1999) – 8.07
Facing the Giants (2006) – 8.06
Hometown Legend (2002) – 8.05
North Dallas Forty (1979) – 8.04
Little Giants (1995) – 8.04
Quarterback Princess (1983) – 8.03
Jerry Maguire (1996) – 7.98
Longest Yard, The (1974) – 7.94
Longest Yard, The (2005) – 7.90
Knute Rockne All American (1940) – 7.72
Two For The Money (2005) – 7.62
Paper Lion (1968) – 7.62
Code Breakers (2005) – 7.47
Fumbleheads (1999) – 7.40
Possums (1998) – 7.28
Game Plan, The (2007) – 7.27
Best of Times, The (1986) – 7.25
All The Right Moves (1983) – 7.23
Wildcats (1986) – 7.22
Heaven Can Wait (1978) – 7.21
Leatherheads (2007) – 7.20
Garbage Picking Field Goal Kicking… (1998) – 7.05
Second String, The (2002) – 6.99
Lucas (1986) – 6.88
They Call Me Sirr (2001) – 6.87
Last Boy Scout, The (1991) – 6.81
Jim Thorpe: All-American (1951) – 6.78
Windrunner (1995) – 6.73
Halfback of Notre Dame (1996) – 6.65
Full Ride (2001) – 6.49
Comebacks, The (2007) – 5.87
Angels In The Endzone (1997) – 5.44
Weapons of Mass Distraction (1997) – 5.35
Air Bud: Golden Receiver (1998) – 5.07
Semi-Tough (1977) – 4.34
Reggie’s Prayer (1996) – 2.64

Personally, I like the following films as my TOP 5 medications for “Football Is Over until July” Syndrome…top 5 after Friday Night Lights, that is:

North Dallas Forty (Paramount Pictures)

Nick Nolte is wide receiver Phillip Elliott in 1979’s “North Dallas Forty” … It was directed by Ted Kotcheff and includes Mac Davis and former Oakland Raider John Matuszak in the story of the North Dallas Bulls, a team modeled after the Dallas Cowboys.

Rudy (TriStar Pictures)

Sean Astin stars as the Notre Dame football underdog in 1993’s “Rudy”. David Anspaugh directed the story of walk-on Rudy Ruettiger’s time with the Fighting Irish. The cast included future stars Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau.

Number One (United Artists)

The offensive line of the New Orleans Saints awaits the call of quarterback Ron Catlan, played by Charlton Heston, in 1969’s “Number One”. Tom Gries directed the story of an aging quarterback who doesn’t know when to hang it up. Jessica Walter played his wife, with Diana Muldaur as his mistress.

Paper Lion (United Artists)

Alan Alda puts on his football gear for a practice session with the Detroit Lions in 1968’s “Paper Lion”. Alex March directed the story from the real-life adventures of writer George Plimpton, who spent a training camp and preseason scrimmage with the Detroit Lions. NFL stars Alex Karras and Roger Brown played themselves.

Any Given Sunday (Robert Zuckerman/Warner Bros.)

Al Pacino is Miami Sharks coach Tony D’Amato and Cameron Diaz is the team owner in 1999’s “Any Given Sunday”. The Oliver Stone drama included Dennis Quaid and Jamie Foxx.

You couldn’t go too far wrong with any of the above films to shore up an empty Sunday afternoon in February or March when the call of the pigskin is like the song of the Harpies upon the ears of Ulysses. I would put our own Eagles’ Invincible a lot higher except for the utter lack of realism in the “open tryouts” scene, and the somewhat ridiculous portrayal of Vince Papale as a clueless street player (Vince was a world-class track/high jump/pole-vault/decathlon athlete at St. Joe’s, not to mention recruited by invitation from the World Football League Philadelphia Bell…he was also a local high school teacher and coach—facts completely ignored by the movie)…

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Fans and critics vote on the Best Football Movies of All Time…

Alan Draper

Friday Night Lights (Universal Studios)

Rudy (TriStar Pictures)

Number One (United Artists)

Paper Lion (United Artists)

Any Given Sunday (Robert Zuckerman/Warner Bros.)

Alan Draper

Alan Draper

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