By JG Hanks
Staff
Reprinted from the September 11, 2011 edition of The Meridian Star’s Meridian 360 Edition
The image is a shot I took with my phone standing at the top of Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, MS on the campus of Mississippi State University (my undergraduate alma mater) at a game between the Bulldogs and Middle Tennessee State University.
As the fall weather approaches and days get shorter, it’s a good time to take a look at the history of films about the South’s other religion…football. While many sports films run the gamut of emotions, football seems to resonate more here and many of these films have been known to make even the most rugged of men shed a tear.
Our lesson begins with the comedic flair of Harold Lloyd in The Freshman in 1925. Widely considered Lloyd’s most enduring work, the film was selected for inclusion in the United States National Film Registry in 1990. The home team Tate beats Union State 6-3 and the college film’s popularity is born. The final game was shot in the Rose Bowl with the crowd scenes taken from an actual game between UC-Berkeley and Stanford during halftime.
The football comedy continued in 1932 with the Marx Brothers starring in Horse Feathers. Despite the film’s age, many of the jokes regarding eligibility and many schools’ insistence on stretching the rules are still relevant today.
In 1940, football great and Notre Dame coaching legend Knute Rockne was immortalized in Knute Rockne, All American. The famous line, “Win just one for the Gipper” was made by Ronald Reagan and was later paraphrased and used as a political slogan in his run for the Presidency.
The life and times of Native American great Jim Thorpe was played out by Burt Lancaster in Jim Thorpe, All American in 1951. The relationship with his legendary coach Glenn “Pop” Warner is also explored as well as his tragic downfall and the unfair stripping of his Olympic medals. The unexplored tragic life of the athlete is for the first time unveiled in this film.
In 1971, ABC’s Movie of the Week Brian’s Song is released and James Caan and Billy Dee Williams portray the friendship of Chicago Bears teammates Brian Piccolo and Gale Sayers to not a dry eye in the house. Considered by many the greatest sports film ever made, it is an enduring testament to friendship and camaraderie.A remake was made in 2001, but nothing will ever compare to the original.
Before he became a huge star, Tom Cruise starred in All the Right Moves in 1983, chronicling the sometimes overwhelming pressure that high school athletes, and coaches, can face in an effort to win. The recession of the early ’80s looms over this film and its impact is seen throughout the small Pennsylvania steel mill town it is set in.
Released in 1986, Lucas is a familiar tale of unrequited love and the mistakes many make in pursuit of affection. Joining the football team is not a good option for someone more interested in studying insects but Lucas does so anyway, gets seriously injured, and eventually earns the respect of the teammates who once despised him. Unfortunately not a completely realistic portrayal of youthful behavior, Lucas is nonetheless a sweet film about growing up and first love with a slight football backdrop.
The sting of reality can sometimes be cruel for the worshiped college athlete after leaving school and that’s the focus of 1988’s Everybody’s All American. Despite marrying his college sweetheart and being drafted into the NFL, Gavin Grey leads a hard life but his wife Babs may have it even harder. Success in college athletics doesn’t always lead to fame and fortune and this film shows the oft forgotten realities that many former standouts face.
Daniel Ruettiger captured our hearts for his determination and no quit attitude in 1993’s Rudy. Although the film is a sentimental journey of one young man’s struggle to play for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (who for only the second time — the first Knute Rockne, All American — allowed scenes to be shot on campus), it must be noted that Coach Dan Devine had already agreed to allow Rudy to play in the final game days before it happened; however movie magic and the “jersey scene” made the event more dramatic.
Living in the shadow of your successful, athletic, Heisman Trophy winning brother can be quite a burden. Especially in a small town like football crazed Urbania, Ohio. In 1994’s Little Giants, Danny O’Shea not only proves he is just as good as his brother Kevin, he also proves that girls can play football (much like 1983’s Quarterback Princess). His daughter, Becky “Icebox” O’Shea, is as good if not better than any of the other Pee-Wee players, but she is ridiculed for being a girl. The film does a great job balancing family values, the perils of adolescence and proving that the power of believing in yourself works. Great cameos by legendary coach John Madden and former NFL players Emmitt Smith, Bruce Smith, Tim Brown and Steve Emtman.
Racism and discrimination are explored through the venue of sports in 2000’s Remember the Titans. Set in ’70’s era Virginia, the film is an uplifting story of overcoming prejudice and a town’s willingness to put aside differences and come together as a community to support their football team. Although somewhat hokey at times and full of sports clichés, the film still delivers emotionally and is a good lesson despite its predictability.
Friday Night Lights in 2004 not only showed the rest of the country how obsessed with high school football that Texas truly is, but also revealed many of the political and social issues sometimes tied to high school athletics.The film was so successful, it led to a television show that lasted five years and was one of the greatest ever to air on the small screen.
While definitely not a best of or even complete list, these mentioned are only a reminder of where motion picture history has brought us in regards to sports and how emotional films can make us. And unlike our country’s national pastime, it’s ok to cry in football.
