For years, sports movies have captured the attention of sports fans everywhere, and in the last 20 years, women athletes are finally getting the limelight. Everyone loves a good underdog story and the way women often have to fight tooth and nail to make it in these films shows just what they have to deal with to be taken seriously in athletics.
While a majority of sports films are still very male-driven, movies like A League of Their Own and Bend It Like Beckham have inspired the younger female generation to pursue their dreams and not be afraid of the pushback from people saying they’ll never be good enough. These movies all share similar messages: to persevere and never give up, no matter how difficult it may be.
Stick It (2006)
After a run-in with the law one too many times, Haley Graham is sent to an elite gymnastics academy run by Burt Vickerman and finds herself back in a world she tried running away from. Throughout Stick It, Haley narrates about the hard work and dedication that is needed to excel at the sport and makes sure to inform all who are watching that gymnastics isn’t just girls in tight clothes doing flippant tricks.
The performance of Missy Peregrym as Haley is powerful, and her leadership of the women’s revolution to control the outcome at the finals adds to the importance of this light-hearted sports comedy.
A League Of Their Own (1992)
Geena Davis and Lori Petty make this fictionalized sports film about real-life events come to life on screen when the sisters become part of the first members of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League after all the men have been shipped off to fight in World War II.
A League of Their Own is inspiring, as it was one of the first sports films to make waves in the feminist movement by showing the first moments of women participating in the male-dominated athletic world. Tom Hanks plays their alcoholic coach and adds to the star-studded phenomenal cast of the film, which includes Madonna. There may not be crying in baseball, but there are many tear-jerking moments as the two sisters struggle with inward rivalries to make a name for themselves.
Bring It On (2000)
Cheerleading took the world by storm in the early 2000s thanks to the film Bring It On, starring Kirsten Dunst and Gabrielle Union. The film inspired many sequels, all of them showing the blood, sweat, and tears involved in making it to the big time. Torrance (Dunst) is the new cheer captain and is excited to take the Toros to the sixth national championship, but becomes devastated when she learns that their old captain stole their routine.
She takes it upon herself to push everyone harder than they’ve ever pushed before to rehearse a new routine in time for the championships and finds herself making valuable new friendships along the way. The movie is sure to make every girl watching want to be a cheerleader.
She’s The Man (2006)
One of Amanda Bynes’ most memorable movies provides a fun, modern retelling of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, with a message that girls are just as good as the boys when it comes to sports. When the girl’s soccer team is cut at Cornwall, Viola (Bynes) asks to try out for the men’s team and is outraged when the coach tells her that girls aren’t as athletic. She proves them all wrong when she disguises herself as her brother, Sebastian, at the rival school Illyria, making it onto the first string for the game against Cornwall.
For a goofy romantic comedy, She’s The Man comes through in showing what women are capable of, plus there’s the satisfaction at the end when Viola makes her ex cry after scoring the winning point against them.
Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Maggie Fitzgerald is a struggling waitress with a dream to pursue a career in professional boxing and finally gets the chance when Frankie Dunn reluctantly agrees to train her. One of Clint Eastwood’s best directorial films, Million Dollar Baby, provides the story of not giving up and persevering even when a majority of the men at the gym want to see Maggie fail.
Maggie and Frankie form an unexpected bond as they work together, pushing one another to better themselves, until the brutal end. The characters come to life on screen with the help of big names like Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman, and Clint Eastwood himself, making this film one that fans won’t want to miss.
Whip It (2009)
In Whip It, Elliot Page played Bliss Cavendar, a teenager who lies about their age for a chance to join the roller derby team called the Hurl Scouts. Whip It was Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut and brought a sport that not many knew much about to light, making this film stand out from the rest.
Bliss Cavendar struggles to find a place in the world as her mother pressures her into the world of beauty pageants, and with the discovery of roller derby, she’s able to finally find something to be passionate about in her small conservative Texas town. With fun satirical nicknames such as “Babe Ruthless” and “Rosa Sparks,” the film gives a nice coming-of-age story about women becoming their own heroes.
Bend It Like Beckham (2002)
Not only was Bend It Like Beckham inspirational to girls everywhere, but a huge landmark for Indian women thanks to the role played by Parminder Nagra. Parminder portrays Jess, an 18-year-old girl who decides to go against her parent’s wishes and tries out for a girl’s soccer team with the coaxing of her new friend, Jules (Keira Knightley).
The girls face many setbacks, including a mildly frustrating mix-up when Jules’ mother accuses the two of being in a lesbian relationship. Despite the ups and downs they face, their team makes it to the championships, and are both offered sports scholarships at Santa Clara University, making their determination to keep playing worth the effort.
Battle Of The Sexes (2017)
Battle of the Sexes follows the true story of the 1973 tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs. The match between the two was given the name “The Battle of the Sexes” and garnered over 90 million viewers around the world, everyone excited to see the outcome of male versus female.
The film is known as one of Emma Stone’s best roles to date with her performance as Billie Jean, who not only fights for gender equality but also struggles to come to terms with her own sexuality. The unfairness in the pay between male and female athletes is prominent in the film and King’s role in bringing the issues to light sets this sports movie apart from the rest.
I, Tonya (2017)
Margot Robbie brings the rivalry of Tonya Harding versus Nancy Kerrigan incident to life in this biopic that shows a different side to the story everyone’s come to know. I, Tonya is one of the best films about ice skating that has come to the big screen and shows the hardships Tonya faced trying to become a world-renowned skater.
While the film is filled with unreliable narrators, it touches on the idea that Harding didn’t fit the mold for what people look for when it comes to the sport, despite being the first woman to land a triple axel. Harding’s association with Kerrigan’s assault led her to be banned from participating in figure skating for life.
Gracie (2007)
When high school soccer star, Johnny Bowen, is killed in a car crash, his younger sister, Gracie, vows to keep his memory alive by taking his place on the team. Gracie shares an emotional story with many challenges, having to overcome the objections of both the coach and her own father after they try telling her that girls had no place playing competitive soccer.
Her dad, played by Dermot Mulroney, comes around and trains Gracie to be as good as one of the boys and it pays off when she scores the winning goal in the championship game. The film is based on Elisabeth Shue’s life growing up, having played on the boy’s team at a young age.
