1. Raging Bull - My favorite movie of all time, period. The scene where Jake LaMotta is getting hammered by Sugar Ray Robinson, blood squirting from his disfigured face, and says, "You never got me down, Ray..." is incredibly compelling. Robert De Niro has done amazing work. To me this was his best. Ditto for director Martin Scorsese.
2. Field of Dreams - A sappy movie, one that involves complete and total fiction that falls completely out of any reasonable realm of possibility. I am not easily captivated by movies like "Field of Dreams." But it does ultimately reveal the essence of baseball better than any movie. At some point, every time I've seen this movie, tears well up in my eyes. I can't help it.
3. Slap Shot - 35 years after this movie came out, the Hanson Brothers are still in demand for public appearances. Why? Because when people think about them, they smile. I think, "Old time hockey, like Eddie Shore." There isn't a kid, who has played hockey that hasn't seen this movie. that's true of even those very young. It's required viewing for hockey players like "Of Mice Mice Men" is required reading for students of American literature.
4. Remember the Titans - Hey, it's my list. I admit to being a sucker for football movies about teams that rise above the odds. This is a true story, and although embellished a bit, it stuck to its real life script better than most films of this genre. The football scenes were exceptionally well done. Denzel Washington was terrific as Herman Boone. There was a great message in this movie. Love it.
5. Hoosiers - Basketball in Indiana, small town America, how much meaning a local high school team can have in a community, a simpler time in the 1950s ..it's the classic Hollywood tale of the underdog, Yet, there were many layers to "Hoosiers" - the disgraced coach, the fallen hometown hero, the quiet, troubled kid with a unique skill, the kid torn between love for his father and hate of his behavior. This movie is a lot more than just a long shot that eventually comes in for a feel-good ending.