F1: The Movie is coming to Apple TV+, giving viewers who didn’t see it at the cinema the chance to see it – here are six other sports films to also check out.
F1: The Movie, which stars Brad Pitt, became the biggest grossing sports film of all time when it was released earlier this year, taking more than $625 million. The movie, filmed in and around the real-life F1 circus, and starring real drivers as themselves, tells the fictional story of Sonny Hayes, a driver tempted out of retirement to mentor a young racer at a new F1 team. Read more on that here.
F1: The Movie joins a long list of great films about sports – there are plenty of bad ones too, but that’s another list for another day – over the past 50 years. But which ones should you watch? Here is a list of six classics – but there are plenty of others. For this, animated movies, such as Cars (which is about circuit racing) are excluded, as are sport-adjacent ones, such as the Fast & Furious series.
Rocky (1976)
Let’s start with arguably the most famous sports movie of them all – Rocky. The 1976 movie, written by and starring Sylvester Stallone as the down-on-his-luck boxer Rocky Balboa was an instant hit on its release and, adjusting for inflation, would have taken nearly $1 billion at the box office, despite being made for a fraction of that. The movie of the underdog spirit spawned four sequels initially, before a more recent revival bringing several more, although the focus is on the son of one of the original characters.
Ford vs Ferrari (2019)
Another motor racing-based movie, Ford vs Ferrari – known as Le Mans ’66 outside of North America – is based on the real-life story of how US car brand Ford took on the might of the Italian sportscar brand Ferrari and won the iconic Le Mans 24 Hour race in France in 1966. Matt Damon stars as former racer-turned-car-designer Carroll Shelby who, along with English driver Ken Miles (Cristian Bale) develop the Ford GT40 that takes on the Ferraris.
Seabiscuit (2003)
Another sports history movie, Seabiscuit is the story of an American racehorse, undersized and overlooked initially, that goes on to win prestigious races and become a sensation during the Depression era of the US. The movie, which starred Tobey Maguire, Jeff Bridges and Elizabeth Banks, was a huge box office hit and received seven Oscar nominations.
Days of Thunder (1990)
Back to motor racing again, this time NASCAR, with 1990 Tom Cruise vehicle, Days of Thunder. In it, Cruise plays Cole Trickle, a talented but hot-headed young driver, who is recruited to a new NASCAR team. After initial struggles, Trickle becomes a contender, feuding with rival Rowdy Burns, leading to both suffering injuries in a huge crash. While recovering, he becomes romantically involved with neurosurgeon Dr Claire Lewicki (Nicole Kidman). Once back on track, Cole must fight against rivals, as well as authority figures, if he is to make it back to Victory Lane again.
A League of Their Own (1992)
This comedy drama tells a fictionalised version of the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, which ran in the 1940s and 50s. The movie had a huge cast of stars, including Geena David, Madonna, Lori Perry and Tom Hanks and was a big box office hit around the world. The story follows the establishment of the league and how it recruited its first players for the first four teams, and then concentrates on the Rockford Peaches side, and how the players bond, as they make it to the World Series.
The Blind Side (2009)
Another biographical sports drama, this time American football, The Blind Side – based on the book of the same name – tells the story of Michael Oher, an offensive lineman, who overcame a poverty-riddled childhood to play in the NFL. The movie was a box office success and Sandra Bullock won the Best Actress Oscar and Golden Globe for her performance in the movie as Leigh Anne Tuohy, Michael’s adoptive mother.
