6. Rocky

If there’s a better example of the ultimate “underdog” story, please share. It’s quite amazing to think that a movie that was released back in 1976 is still considered not just one of the best sports movies, but one of the best movies of all time.

“The Italian Stallion” Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) gets the chance of a life time to fight the world heavyweight champion of boxing Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers). Seen more as a publicity ploy by Apollo Creed than an actual fight, it turns out to be one of the best fights in recent memory.

At the same time, Rocky’s personal life is in shambles. Being given the opportunity of a life time quickly thrusts him into the limelight and forces him to have a different outlook for the future. He pairs up with Mickey Goldwill (Burgess Meredith), a trainer who didn’t give Rocky the light of day for six years until Rocky was given the chance to fight Apollo. They form a strong bond that helps get them both through the training and the fight of the century.

Rocky also has met the love of his life Adrian Pennino (Talia Shire) who becomes the Yin to his Yang. To Rocky, Adrian is something worth fighting for and it adds extra motivation for him to do his best and no matter what happens, he will still have her.

Ultimately it comes down to the relationship between Rocky and Adrian. Even though Rocky is fighting for the world championship of boxing, he and Adrian continue to get closer as the fight approaches. The night before the fight, Rocky goes for a walk. He figures he has no shot at beating Apollo, but as he explains to Adrian when he comes back, there’s still a chance for respect.

Rocky Balboa: Ah come on, Adrian, it’s true. I was nobody. But that don’t matter either, you know? ‘Cause I was thinkin’, it really don’t matter if I lose this fight. It really don’t matter if this guy opens my head, either. ‘Cause all I wanna do is go the distance. Nobody’s ever gone the distance with Creed, and if I can go that distance, you see, and that bell rings and I’m still standin’, I’m gonna know for the first time in my life, see, that I weren’t just another bum from the neighborhood.

I’m sure most of you have seen this movie at least once. Most of you probably have it higher on your list. It’s a timeless classic. Everyone can agree on that. The characters are unforgettable. Some of the lines are recognizable.

“Yo Adrian”
“You’re gonna eat lightning and crap thunder”
“Cut me Mick”
“You’re a bum”

All memorable quotes. This was a great story that frankly went two movies too long. “Rocky V” and “Rocky Balboa” were unnecessary and you could make the same argument for “Rocky IV.” However, the standard was set with the original and “Rocky II” was just as good, but nothing is better than the original.

This top 10 list is sports movies that I’ve seen. Not what others recommend, but only what my eyes have seen and that I truly enjoy. If you haven’t seen this movie, netflix it, pirate the movie, however you go about watching movies, just do it.

Week 10 Review of the NFL

What was Washington thinking?

Like with most of the politicians in Washington, the football team is making some puzzling decisions. They didn’t let Albert Haynesworth go when it was clearly apparent that he didn’t want to play for the Redskins. Then benching Donovan McNabb in favor of Rex Grossman when they’re down by only one touchdown. Does anyone honestly think that Rex Grossman is a better quarterback than McNabb? That’s what Mike Shanahan said. Now after that, the Redskins went for it and gave McNabb a five year extension. Amazing indeed. I’m a firm believer that McNabb is a great quarterback. Not many can say they led their team to five straight NFC Championship games and one Super Bowl appearance. With that aside, why did the Redskins give him an extension in the middle of the season? Someone I know said that it was “shut up” money. I don’t think that was the reason, but rule number one for me on giving contract extensions is you don’t do it in the middle of the season. Just ask the New York Knicks how it worked for them giving Isiah Thomas a contract extension in the middle of the season when he was the head coach. What happened to the Redskins during McNabb’s first game with a new contract? They fell flat on their face to McNabb’s former team losing 59-28. Not a wise move in an already lost season.

Jacksonville’s prayers are answered

It’s probably the most exciting play in football, the Hail Mary pass. It doesn’t happen very often, but it brings everyone to their feet. I can’t say that I agreed with the move at the time, but I did think, “what the heck, why not try it” if you’re Jacksonville head coach Jack Del Rio. It works, you win. If it doesn’t, it’s overtime. Houston came into the game with the worst pass defense in the league and Del Rio figured that it was worth a shot on their home turf. Houston cornerback Glover Quinn did the right thing by batting the ball towards the ground. That’s what you’re told to do in that situation. The problem was that no one, and i mean no one was covering Jaguars receivers Mike Thomas or Marcedes Lewis who were two yards away from the endzone when Thomas caught the ball. It was definitely the most exciting play of the year so far. The Jaguars and Texans seasons will be marred by that one play. Jacksonville is moving up while Houston is on the way down.

Whose the best team? I don’t know, quit asking.

It’s being asked every single week and frankly I’m tired of hearing it asked. This week it’s New England turn to be called the best team in the NFL. Sure they beat a pretty good Pittsburgh Steelers team in Pittsburgh, but they seem to always stiffen up when they play New England for some reason. The Giants were considered the best team in the NFC. That is until they laid down against the lowly Dallas Cowboys. Sure, the stadium had a couple of delays due to the stadium lights being out, but you shouldn’t have been blown out at home by a division rival. Here’s how it will setup for next week. Will Indianapolis or New England be the best team after they play each other? Will Philadelphia be the best team in the NFC if they beat the Giants? Mark my words that will be the topic of discussion in another episode of, “Whose the beast team?” Ask me when it’s January 3, 2011.

7. Happy Gilmore

Yes, it’s a golf movie. Not the kind of golf movie you would expect. I mean it stars Adam Sandler. Now I will go ahead and say this now. The rest of the list doesn’t have another Sandler movie? Why? To me this movie was better than “The Longest Yard” and “The Waterboy.” If you’ve seen this movie, then you know exactly what I mean. If not, I will set it up for you.

As I said earlier the main character is Adam Sandler’s. That character is Happy Gilmore. He is really a hockey player who isn’t as good as he thinks he is. His grandmother’s house is being seized by the IRS and will be up for auction if they don’t pay up. Happy discovers by accident that he can hit a golf ball over 400 yards. So he figures he can make some easy money that way. A former pro-golfer named Chubbs Peterson sees some real talent in him and offers his help to turn Happy Gilmore into more than a side show. Happy will have to learn on the fly as a rival named Shooter McGavin will stop at nothing to make sure he fails.

Besides seeing Adam Sandler and his antics, the other cast is pretty well known and hilarious. Chubbs is played by Carl Weathers. Yes that same “Predator” and “Rocky” fighting individual. Christopher McDonald does a great job of being Shooter McGavin. Julie Bowen, who is one of the stars of “Modern Family” played Happy Gilmore’s love interest Virginia Venit. She is fantastic. And last, but not least Bob Barker from “The Price is Right” makes an appearance.

The following scene with Happy Gilmore and Bob Barker is the best way to sway you to watch it for the first time or the one hundredth time. This is easily one of the best if not the best thing about this movie. Enjoy.

Happy Gilmore: [Having a bad day of golfing due to a member of the crowd] That guy’s driving me *crazy*!

Bob Barker: You know what’s driving *me* crazy? You, not getting the ball in the hole.

Happy: Don’t push me, Bob! Now’s not the time.
[Happy hits the ball, which hits a man standing on a boat, who then falls into the water]

Bob: This guy sucks!

Announcer: We haven’t seen Happy Gilmore play *this* badly since his first day on tour. He and Bob Barker are now dead-last.

Bob: I can’t *believe* you’re a professional golfer! I think you should be working at the snack bar.

Happy: [Angrily, with teeth clenched] You better relax, Bob.

Bob: There is *no* way that you could have been as bad at hockey as you are at golf!

Happy: Alright, let’s go!
[Happy throws down his club and punches Bob in the face, who falls to the ground]

Happy: You like that, old man? You want a piece of me?

Bob: [Shaking his head as he gets up] I don’t want a *piece* of you, I want the *whole thing*!
[Punches Happy in the gut, then proceeds to punch him in the face ten times, sending Happy falling into a pond]

Happy: [Happy gets out] Now you’re gonna get it, Bobby!
[Happy grabs his club and swings at Bob, who blocks, punches Happy in the face, then throws him to the ground. Happy tackles Bob, resulting in both of them rolling down a hill. At the bottom, Happy headbutts Bob]

Happy: The price is *wrong*, bitch!

Bob: [Bob grabs Happy’s throat, opens his eyes with a menacing look, stands up, punches Happy in the gut twice, and once in the face before Happy falls down again] I think you’ve had enough.
[Starts to walk away, but notices Happy start to stand up again]

Bob: No?
[Kicks Happy in the face]

Bob: *Now* you’ve had enough… bitch.

Yes. Bob freaking Barker is the man. Aside from that, “Happy Gilmore” really brought the sport of golf to the forefront for me. Not that I watch it all the time, but I do have an interest in it. Heck, it does run in my family and most of yours to. If you haven’t seen it I highly recommend it and that you watch it with someone who has. You will appreciate it that much more.

Week 9 Review of the NFL

The Return of the Blackhole

The one overlying question about the Oakland Raiders at the beginning of the season was whether Jason Campbell was the answer to their quarterback problems. From the start it looked like he wasn’t and Oakland turned to Bruce Gradkowski once again. Gradkowski isn’t the best quarterback, but brings added life to a struggling offense. When he went down to a shoulder injury, head coach Tom Cable decided to change the offenses approach. The answer was to run the football. Darren McFadden, a former 4th overall pick of the Raiders, has been a big part of the Raiders turnaround the past three weeks. With that added emphasis on the run, that has made it a lot easier for Jason Campbell to throw the ball down field. That has led to Campbell throwing 5 touchdowns to 1 interception in the last three games. It marks the first time that the Raiders have won three straight games since their Super Bowl season of 2002. Rejoice Raider Nation, with that showing against your rival Kansas City, the rest of the league might have to take you serious once again.

J.J. makes a move

I’ve been confused about the Dallas Cowboys for a long time. It goes back to the time when they hired Dave Campo as their head coach. Yeah, who is that again? Anyway, the Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has made a big investment once again into his team and he like any owner expects a return on that investment. A 1-7 start is not the return he expected. When J.J. said after one of their losses that Wade Phillips was going to be the head coach for the rest of the season. I found that kind of odd. Yes, Jerry has never fired a head coach in the middle of a season, but this was Jerry’s making. He and many others expected the Cowboys to be Super Bowl contenders. Dallas was not living up to his expectations. This last butt whooping against the Green Bay Packers on national television no less was the last straw. Jerry fired Wade Phillips, who will definitely get another defensive coordinator gig, but I don’t believe he will get another chance as a head coach. He’s had so many chances to succeed with good teams. This latest one in Dallas will stick with him for a long time. Jerry now will have to start over and bring in someone who knows football to over see the operation. He will also need to bring in a no nonsense coach, like Jon Gruden, to demand more from his players. If J.J. can do those two things, the Cowboys will be a contender very quickly.

Brett Favre does it again

Just when you think Favre can’t be the old gunslinger again, he surprises us all. The Vikings being down by two scores against the Arizona Cardinals at home. Really most of the pressure was on head coach Brad Childress who was probably going to be fired as soon as the game was over. Favre calmly after throwing his second interception of the game, is given another chance to drive the Vikings down the field for a Adrian Peterson rushing touchdown. The Cardinals offense is stagnant and the Vikings have another chance with Favre throwing the ball all over the place to tie the game. Why Visanthe Shiancoe was that wide open I will never know. With all that momentum the Vikings were sure to win it in overtime thanks to a Ryan Longwell field goal. Now does this mean the Vikings will turn their 3-5 season around? Probably not. It does say that Favre is still Favre and the Vikings have made a deal with the devil in a sense that last season and this season rests on the right arm of Brett Favre. Childress’ fate has been sealed, but if they have a miraculous turnaround, say winning the Super Bowl, they will probably keep him around for another year. It won’t happen, but it’s in the back of our minds. Crazier things have happened.

8. Remember the Titans

This is the first of only two football movies on my list. Why? It’s difficult to make a great football movie. Put together your top ten list and tell me how many of them are football movies. Unless you’re a die hard football fan and that’s the only sports movies you will watch, you won’t have many on your list, guaranteed.

“Remember the Titans” is based on the true story of the 1971 T.C. Williams high school football team from Alexandria, Virginia. The main character is the head coach of the football team, Herman Boone played by Denzel Washington. Now don’t go storming off to watch this because Denzel is in it. There is much more to this movie.

Basically the story goes like this. Segregation was beginning to be washed away and in Virginia it started with an all white school and an all black school being integrated into T.C. Williams. Boone was hired to be the coach of the all black school while the all white school coach Bill Yoast, played by Will Patton, was to be the head coach for T.C. Williams. Boone was going to be an assistant under Yoast at T.C. Williams, but the school board decided before the season to give the job to Boone over Yoast.

Of course that didn’t go over well and all hell was about to break loose. What it all boils down to is that it’s a case of black and white at a time when they were judging by the color of their skin and not the content of their character. Even when it came to playing a game of football. This true story of what both Herman Boone and Bill Yoast did to calm the animosity both on the field and in the community is nothing short of miraculous. At the same time the football team was doing something that was extremely special too.

The two star players, both playing on defense, were at each others throats from the start. Gerry Bertier, played by Ryan Hurst was white. Julius Campbell, played by Wood Harris was black. Both were headstrong, but soon realized that what they originally thought about each other was completely wrong. Their story along with the coaches was amazing to see unfold.

During their camp at Gettysburg College in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, coach Boone decided to take the entire team for a pre-dawn hike. At the end of the hike they came upon hallowed ground in which coach Boone said the following:

Coach Boone: Anybody know what this place is? This is Gettysburg. This is where they fought the battle of Gettysburg. Fifty thousand men died right here on this field, fighting the same fight that we are still fighting among ourselves today. This green field right here, painted red, bubblin’ with the blood of young boys. Smoke and hot lead pouring right through their bodies. Listen to their souls, men. I killed my brother with malice in my heart. Hatred destroyed my family. You listen, and you take a lesson from the dead. If we don’t come together right now on this hallowed ground, we too will be destroyed, just like they were. I don’t care if you like each other or not, but you will respect each other. And maybe… I don’t know, maybe we’ll learn to play this game like men.

If that was just a Hollywood speech so be it. If the real Herman Boone said this, that is truly an amazing speech. Either way, it brings to life what the movie is all about. We too will be destroyed if we don’t come together right now.

To me this movie both brings light to modern times. It’s just a movie, but the core of the story is that we need to judge someone by their character and not by skin color if we are to be a cohesive society. Anyone can play a game together and anyone can do anything they want so long as they strive to be the best they can be. Tensions were high and no body wanted to get along, but they realized that there wasn’t anything different about them other than the color of their skin.