The 5 best sports movies currently streaming on Netflix

Netflix is ​​constantly shuffling through a strong slate of sports movies. This slideshow walks through the top five sports movies currently on the streaming service. Now Netflix has a lot of great sports documentaries on duty, and maybe there’s a future slideshow to go through the best ones. But this list focuses on movies.

Netflix cycles through movies over time. And with the NBA season and NFL season in full swing, it’s no surprise that basketball and soccer make up the majority of movies on this list.

Honorable Mention: Point Break (1991)

ok ok point break is strictly speaking not a sports film. In fact, the 1993 thriller starring Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze would rarely fit into that category. The more detailed description of point break is a robbery thriller – and perhaps one of the best of all time. However, with a classic beach football scene and some exciting surfing sequences, we call it a sports movie.

point break tells the story of undercover FBI agent Johnny Utah (Reeves) and his attempt to infiltrate a group of surfers led by Bodhi (Swayze), who he believes is the leader of a gang called the “Ex-Presidents”. . But when Utah gets too close to Bodhi, his job begins to mix with his newfound friendship.

While point break Definitely worth a watch and at the top of this author’s all-time returning list, it may not fit the bill of classic “sports movies”. Despite this, it has earned a place at the table in the Honorable Mention category.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 20: Brian J. White at GBK Productions and WEN Presents A Luxurious Lounge for Television’s Top Talent on September 20, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Araya Diaz/Getty Images for GBK Productions)

5.Amateur (2018)

amateur, starring Michael Rainey, Jr. as Terron Forte, tells the story of an aspiring basketball player with a learning disability. His talents send him to Liberty Prep, an elite basketball school, with a goal of earning a college scholarship.

Forte is forced to balance his learning difficulties with the high and hyper-focused expectations of his new school and coach, played by Josh Charles, as well as his relationship with his father (Brian White), who is struggling with his own previous sports injuries.

While amateur Released by Netflix and not as well known as the classics on this list, it tells a compelling story about how the commercialization of sport is affecting children at an increasingly younger age. It wouldn’t be surprising if a bigger budget version of this story were eventually told, but for now, amateur is the only film that tells this story.

1999 Al Pacino and Cameron Diaz star in the film Any Given Sunday. (Photo by Getty Images)

4. Any Given Sunday (1999)

In 1999, Oliver Stone directed Any Sunday to show the life behind the scenes of our beloved professional athletes. In typical Stone style, the portrayal is overdone and certainly fraught with problems. Coach Tony D’Amato (Al Pacino) tries to keep a team together while dealing with a QB controversy between Jack Rooney (Dennis Quaid) and Willie Beaman (Jamie Foxx). Meanwhile, he constantly competes against new owner Christina Pagniacci (Cameron Diaz).

Any Sunday is a stylized, wild ride into the dark underbelly of the sports industry that features some incredibly memorable scenes, like Pacino’s “one inch at a time” speech that has become a real Jumbotron favorite to heat up the crowd. in a sense All given Sundays trying to do something baller, the HBO show starring The Rock, did years earlier. Despite its many flaws, Any Sunday is still a must watch.

HURRY. (LR) Ainhoa ​​Pillet as Lucia, Maria Botto as Paola, Juancho Hernangomez as Bo Cruz and Adam Sandler as Stanley Sugerman in Hustle. Kr. Scott Yamano/Netflix © 2022.

3. Hustle (2022)

not how amateurearlier on this list, Hurry was released on Netflix to much hype and universal acclaim. It tells the story of Stanley Sugarman (Adam Sandler), a scout for the Philadelphia 76ers who dreams of one day coaching the team.

He has an eye for talent and believes his ticket to fulfilling his dream can win outrageous recruit Bo Cruz (Juancho Hernangómez). He puts his all into Cruz, training and coaching him in preparation for a career in the league. His family life is proving fragile with his constant travels, but his wife Teresa (Queen Latifah) continues to support him.

Hurry marks another great sports movie that doesn’t focus on the game itself, but rather a behind-the-scenes look at a booming industry, in the sense of money ball and draft day. It offers a fresh story and is backed by strong performances from Sandler, Latifah and Hernangómez.

Furthermore, Hurry is packed with real NBA stars like Trae Young, Khris Middleton, Kyle Lowry, Seth Curry, Luka Doncic, Tobias Harris and Tyrese Maxey. Hurry is another fun watch, and while it’s the newest addition to this list, it’s likely to join the canon of great basketball movies.

LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 02: (EMBARGOED TO DATE/TIME PUBLICATION IN UK TABLOID NEWSPAPERS UP TO 48 HOURS. MANDATORY CREDIT PHOTO BY DAVE M. BENETT/WIREIMAGE REQUIRED) Ron Howard (L) and Daniel Bruehl attend the World Premiere of ‘ Rush’ at the Odeon Leicester Square on September 2, 2013 in London, England.(Photo by Dave M. Benett/WireImage)

2nd Onslaught (2013)

before F1: Drive to survive and the recent popularity of Formula One racing in the United States, a blockbuster directed by Ron Howard Hurry up in 2013, which didn’t get the recognition it really deserved. It stars Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Brühl as F1 racers James Hunt and Niki Lauda, ​​respectively. Hurry up tells the story of the 1976 season and the bitter rivalry between these two great drivers, which escalates into mutual respect and even admiration.

Hurry up is an electric watch that keeps viewers on their toes the whole time, exploring the sport’s turbulent history before additional safety regulations were introduced in later seasons.

These riders were literally putting their lives on the line at a time when one fatality per season was not uncommon. While the more recent Netflix documentaries may have been eclipsed Hurry up in terms of popularity serving as a real catalyst of American F1 fandom, Hurry up is a must-read for anyone wanting to delve deeper into a sport that continues to grow in the United States.

US rapper Tupac Shakur on the set of Above the Rim in Harlem. (Photo by Mark Peterson/Corbis via Getty Images)

1. Over the Edge (1994)

drum roll please The number one sports movie currently streaming on Netflix is ​​. . . Over the Edge. This 1994 film, directed by Jeff Pollack, might not be everyone’s first thought of a great sports movie, but it is Over the Edge has become an absolute classic.

It tells the story of Kyle Watson (Duane Martin), a star high school basketball player who aspires to play in Georgetown, caught between his dreams and life on the streets of New York. First, he’s inducted into Birdie’s (Tupac Shakur) gang with Motaw (Wood Harris) as the key to winning a neighborhood basketball tournament. But Shep (Leon), Birdie’s brother, takes Kyle under his wing to teach him how to play the game properly.

While Over the Edge certainly has many of the tropes found in typical sports movies – a young player of immense talent struggles with life only to learn lessons that go beyond the basketball court – it’s due to its amazing cast, fantastic soundtrack and the eerie Symbolism has become a classic of Birdie’s death, but above all because it marked a merging of cultures.

It put NY street basketball on the big screen when most sports films tended to show players in the collegiate or pro ranks. It brought out that athletic subculture that everyone knew but few saw. And that was at a time when hip-hop was going mainstream and using one of rap’s biggest stars to tell the story. Over the Edge is not as well known as it should be and everyone should watch it while it’s on Netflix!

What are your favorite sports films? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.