Sports movies about women are exciting and emotional. They are thus because in order for there to be a movie to be made, there must be a great story. Sometimes the story is one of struggling against personal adversity, sometimes it’s a battle against a male dominated system and sometimes it’s just for the sheer love of the sport and a jolly good tale. Here’s some romping good sports movies about women.
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Million Dollar Baby (2004)
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
Arguably one of the most critically acclaimed sports movies about women in the last decade, Million Dollar Baby tells the story of a rough and ready young woman named Maggie Fitzgerald who dreams of becoming a championship winning boxer. Starring Hilary Swank and Clint Eastwood, the film picked up a handful of Oscars and provides an expert mix of drama and tragedy. A truly amazing picture.
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Bend It like Beckham (2002)
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
Bend It Like Beckham became the surprise smash hit of the year when it was released in 2002. It stars Parminder Nagra as Jess, an Asian teenager with phenomenal football skills who has to hide her passion from her overbearing, traditional family. Nagra’s on screen chemistry with a young and tomboyish Keira Knightley makes the film one you will want to watch again and again, and it’s laugh out loud funny too!
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Love & Basketball (2000)
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
This is the touching and moving story of a lifelong romance inextricably linked to basketball. Sanaa Lathan plays Monica Wright, a promising high school basketball player who grows up and falls in love with her equally talented childhood friend Quincy McCall (Omar Epps). The American drama explores the tensions between two such competitive sportspeople and examines the sporting sacrifices that the couple has to make to save their relationship.
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National Velvet (1944)
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
This classic work of cinema from 1944 stars a young Elizabeth Taylor as Velvet, a young girl who has a passion for horse riding, and with help of co-star Mickey Rooney, disguises herself as a boy in order to enter the most prestigious race in the calendar, the Grand National. Working with a horse said to be ‘unbreakable,’ young Velvet fights against the odds in a film that has an almost unprecedented 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. A must see for classic film fans!
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Whip It (2009)
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
A film that explores the more alternative side of women’s sports, Whip It introduces the audience to the weird and wonderful world of roller derby. Ellen Page stars as Bliss, a small town girl who finds her place in life once she joins a local roller derby team full of eclectic and interesting women. Drew Barrymore both stars alongside and directs the film, and it is as funny and heartwarming as it is sports oriented.
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Silence at the proper season is wisdom, and better than any speech.
Pat & Mike (1952)
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
One of the many films that brought together real life lovers Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy, Pat & Mike is a film about a college physical education teacher who enters a professional golf and tennis tournament. Played by Hepburn, Pat enlists the help of Mike (Tracy) to be her promoter and manager and the undeniable chemistry starts to fly in this romantic sports comedy that stands the test of time. A must see for fans of the Hepburn/Tracy saga!
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A League of Their Own (1992)
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
Undoubtedly my personal favorite when it comes to sports movies about women, 1992’s A League of Their Own tells the story of a professional women’s baseball league that was set up during the absence of male players in World War II. A star studded cast featuring Geena Davis, Madonna, Rosie O’Donnell and Tom Hanks help to make A League of Their Own a genuinely heartfelt and endearing movie with endless memorable quotes. “There’s no crying in baseball!”
Did any of these sports movies motivate you? What sports do you participate in?
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