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Sports film
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A sports film is a film genre that uses sport as the theme of the film. It is a production in which a sport, sporting event, athlete (and their sport), or follower of sport (and the sport they follow) are prominently featured, and which depend on sport to a significant degree for their plot motivation or resolution. Despite this, sport is ultimately rarely the central concern of such films and sport performs primarily an allegorical role.[1] Furthermore, sports fans are not necessarily the target demographic in such movies, but sports fans tend to have a large following or respect for such movies.
Subgenres[edit]
Several sub-categories of sports films can be identified, although the delineations between these subgenres, much as in live action, are somewhat fluid.
The most common sports subgenres depicted in movies are sports drama and sports comedy. Both categories typically employ playground settings, match, game creatures and other elements commonly associated with biological stories.
Sports films tend to feature a more richly developed sport world, and may also be more player-oriented or thematically complex. Often, they feature a hero of adventure origins and a clear distinction between loss and victory set against each other in a play time struggle.
Sports comedy[edit]
Sports comedy combines the sports film genre with comedy film elements. Thematically, the story is often one of "Our Team" versus "Their Team"; their team will always try to win, and our team will show the world that they deserve recognition or redemption; the story does not always have to involve a team. Examples and staples of the genre include The Waterboy, The Longest Yard (2005 film), Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, and Blades of Glory. [2]
Sports drama[edit]
In the sports genre, characters play sports. Thematically, the story is often one of “Our Team” versus “Their Team”; one team will always try to win, and another team will show the world that they deserve recognition or redemption, though the story does not always have to involve a team. The story could also be about an individual athlete or the story could focus on an individual playing on a team.[3] Examples of this genre/type include: Body and Soul (1947), The Hustler (1961), Rocky (1976), Hoosiers (1986), Remember the Titans (2000), Moneyball (2011), Ford v Ferrari (2019) and the Goal! trilogy.
List of sports films[edit]
Highest-grossing sports films[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ Crosson, Seán (2013). Sport and Film. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. p. 60. ISBN 9780415569934.
- ↑ Williams, Eric R. Screen adaptation : beyond the basics : techniques for adapting books, comics, and real-life stories into screenplays. Ayres, Tyler. New York. ISBN 978-1-315-66941-0. OCLC 986993829.
- ↑ Firestein, David J. (2007). "Fields of Dreams: American Sports Movies". E Journal USA. 12.
- Friedman, Lester D. (2020) Sports Movies Rutgers University Press ISBN 9780813599885
- (fr) Julien Camy and Gérard Camy, ed. Du Bailli de Suffren (2016) Sport&Cinéma (1200 films, 60 sports, 80 interviews)
- Edgington, Erskine, Welsh (2010) Encyclopedia of Sports Films Scarecrow Press ISBN 9780810876538
- Allen & Hershenson (1996) Sports Movie Posters ISBN 9781887893152
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