best sports documentaries of all time

Keith Cavill, Despite the best efforts of the BBC, BT Sport and a couple of lone feature film-makers, in this game, we're playing catch-up. The Express (2008)62%. From Free Solo to The Last Dance, we bring you the definitive roll call of the best in the game. John Chancellor, John Bisignano, He wagers his way from his local bookie in East Anglia to boxing in Peterborough and London casinos, then Australia, Macau, Hong Kong and Las Vegas, shining valuable light on gambling. Terry Funk, Ralf Berzsenyi, Ken Burns Revenge, pride and passion are only the half of it, and when surviving players are reunited half-a-century later, you know exactly what Tarantino meant. 90 min "Only last week, I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalised a brick! So begins a quietly brilliant three hours in the company of British sportswriting's great wayward talent, a man described as Keith Floyd crossed with Hunter S Thompson and a known betting enthusiast (C4 funded him in the wake of his book, Twelve Grand, about punting the titular amount). $2.67M, R | Gross: Director: Christopher Browne The Best That Never Was. Here are the 20 best HBO documentaries of all time. The film tells the story … William and Arthur's NBA dreams are the heartbeat of the film, but director Steve James uses basketball as the jumping-off point to explore the harsh realities of inner-city life, as well as issues of race, class and education. | Director: Stars: Stars: 34,862 The shots of Taylor on the touchline as England lose their chance to qualify are comically poignant. Don King, Bluemark Productions. (He'd partied hard and got his playing days mixed up.) Ali talks about freedom and the African-American condition, while earning $5m for a bout in a country run by a murderous dictator. Andrés Escobar was an elegant centre-half for Atlético Nacional and the Colombian national team, who was shot dead on the orders of a drug baron — not Pablo — after Colombia went out of the 1994 World Cup. When Graham Taylor died in January, tributes said the former manager and pundit was one of football's true nice guys. Documentary, History, Sport. Emma Gates, Photo courtesy of Kartemquin Films At the heart of great sports is usually great drama. I'm looking forward to it." $0.31M, G Joe Paterno, Robert Soares, Votes: With that, here’s a look at the top five sports documentaries of all time. Laird Hamilton, Stars: The sub genre of ski and snowboard films is notable mainly for wild landscapes and outlandish stunts. | Film-makers Chin and Vasarhelyi were well aware of that, and that’s part of what makes Free Solo, which documents Honnold’s attempt to be the first to scale El Capitan in Yosemite Valley – so fascinating. This film does the same, via young men from a forgotten Tennessee town and Courtney, who might just be an answer to a pre-match prayer. | Nicholas Aaron, Votes: | Icarus (2017) Like all great documentaries, Icarus isn’t about what it was supposed to be about. 795 Die-hard gamers compete to break world records on classic arcade games. Some are new, some are older, and some are just too iconic to not have on this list. There's no doubt this epic retelling of the life and times of OJ Simpson is a milestone of documentary making. Spellbound follows eight teenagers on their quest to win the 1999 National Spelling Bee. Alan Dershowitz, Votes: Anyway, football wasn't fun for all the family back then. A film following the lives of two inner-city Chicago boys who struggle to become college basketball players on the road to going professional. 2,605 Seeing sport get the art-house treatment is rare and splendid. Director Stevan Riley’s "Fire in Babylon" has all the ingredients of a great sports documentary. Scott McGarraugh, Votes: This film, although sharing a little of that DNA, is an outlier, because it has genuine emotional pull and ranges beyond extreme sport into something far deeper about human endeavour and the search for happiness, wherever you look for it. The Last Dance centres on Michael Jordan’s final season at the Bulls, and their attempt to win an unprecedented sixth title in eight years. You get the broken athletes at the back of the marathon, as well as the leaders. 5,207 Films in general, have the power to move you. Directed by Louise Osmond and Jerry Rothwell. An exciting prospect, but it will have to go some way to match the searing brilliance of Senna. What would you do? | Gross: Taylor's openness made him a laughing stock, his "Do I not like that" and "Can we not knock it" became catchphrases. 214 min A British documentary that follows two young North Korean girls as they prepare for the Mass Games, the world's largest choreographed gymnastics performance. is a rare behind-the-scenes chronicling of a remarkable season for the Massillon Tigers high school football team, played out in a small rustbelt town that draws its identity ... See full summary », Director: 97 min They are altered immeasurably, however, by their realisation that life doesn't have to be boring and that being part of something bigger than yourself is its own reward. Quadriplegics, who play full-contact rugby in wheelchairs, overcome unimaginable obstacles to compete in the Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece. That’s despite the fact that it’s about surfers you’ve never heard of. 9,877 Victoria Ferrigno, R Reginaldo Leme, But to those whose knowledge of OJ runs to: "former NFL player acquitted of killing his wife and also in The Naked Gun", the film is a revelation. | George Butler, Geist cites Senna (2010) as among her favourite films. Abebe Bikila, 65,010 Take a look at the others below. | One of the outstanding ESPN 30 for 30 series of documentaries, it charts the rise of Marcus Dupree, lauded as the best high school football player ever. Mick Foley, It was truly ground-breaking in format and content. Dan Malloy, Director: A documentary on the history of the sport with major topics including Afro-American players, player/team owner relations and the resilience of the game. $0.94M, Not Rated The filmmaker even managed to get some extremely rare, surprisingly revealing interview time with the man himself. It helped that Senna's life was special and tragic, but with no pauses for analysis or after-the-fact context, the film is totally enthralling from the first moment to last. Sheigo Arai, Stars: 170 min The film also asks every viewer a question they can't ignore, "What would you do in this situation?" Dark Horse is not a rags-to-riches story in the strictest sense, because despite the race success, Jan Vokes and her syndicate do not receive material gains. Chris Barnes, 90 min Twenty years ago, a BBC film crew decamped to Sunderland to record a year in the life of the club, then, as now, yo-yoing in and out of the Premier League. A documentary of the 1974 heavyweight championship bout in Zaire, "The Rumble in the Jungle," between champion George Foreman and underdog challenger Muhammad Ali. $1.52M, PG Stars: 105 min 93 min Steve James | The life and career of Hank Greenberg, the first major Jewish baseball star in the Major Leagues. | Ahmed Issa, Director: Director: | This engaging film reveals more than mere debunking (or not) of myth. 86 min 70 Metascore. Documentary detailing the origins and history of surf culture. Director: Leni Riefenstahl The crown jewel to ten years of Bruce Brown surfing documentaries. | Gross: Subscribe to Esquire now for a hit of style, fitness, culture and advice from the experts, The Oscars Ending Is Our New 'Joker' Origin Story, Anthony Hopkins Found the Perfect Zoom Background, Daniel Kaluuya Thanked His Parents For Having Sex, Oscars Goodie Bags Inspired the Age of Influencers, Why 'Heat' Could Be the Oscars' Greatest Snub, At This Year's Oscars, Trump Is Still Everywhere, 6 Great Filmmakers Who Haven’t Won ‘Best Director', Mads Mikkelsen on Casino Royale's Torture Scene, The 71 Best Films on Netflix UK Right Now, Paul Wilson, Miranda Collinge and Esquire Editors, ESQUIRE, PART OF THE HEARST UK FASHION & BEAUTY NETWORK. | 12,369 Director: | | $0.68M, PG Foreman and Ali joined the filmmakers on stage when the film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary. Neide Senna, Votes: Director: Our list of the 30 Best Sports Movies of All Time includes classics like Rocky and Field of Dreams, newer films like I, Tonya, and more. Ankie Spitzer, Dave Kalama, Documentary, Sport. Darrick Doerner, Yoshinori Sakai, PG-13 | Gross: Ubaldo Arenivar, As we turned the corner of the course, all the members were at the window [of the clubhouse]. The film is full of such moments. Bruce Brown, PG As fans of TV's Friday Night Lights know, high-school football is where the good stuff lies, where dreams are made and shattered, where talking to God and listening to Coach are the only rules of the locker room. Australia’s leading sports documentary makers take a look at The Last Dance and reveal their favourite docos to watch. There's only one talking head punctuating clips in this film. | | Gross: The 1974 championship match “The Rumble in the Jungle” is the subject of this Oscar-winning documentary, which pitted underdog Muhammad Ali against champion George Foreman. Director: 33,993 Layne Beachley, In 1993, after filming Taylor's England World Cup qualifying campaign, they were banned by the Dutch FA from filming at the penultimate qualifier in Holland. The lack of sponsor names makes it seem 100 years old, never mind 50. 106 min | Gross: Toback had been friends with Iron Mike for 20 years when they made this, so he can ask about Tyson's rape conviction or "colourful" ex-manager Don King. Thus, the film's last act is far more poignant than you'd bargained for. They're three impeccable pieces of work that more than deserve their place in this, our round-up of the greatest sports documentaries ever made. Since the 1897 flick The Corbett-Fitzsimmons Fight documented an entire boxing match for Victorian audiences to watch, sports docs have definitely come a long way. This documentary follows NBA superstar LeBron James and four of his talented teammates through the trials and tribulations of high school basketball in Ohio and James' journey to fame. The document of the 1936 Olympics at Berlin. The world grieved and paid tribute to an immensely brilliant, indelibly flawed man. A small-time boxer gets a supremely rare chance to fight a heavyweight champion in a bout in which he strives to go the distance for his self-respect. Now, I love some variety when watching sports films, so the list may be a bit scrambled. Stars: Stars: But how can you show something that really happened if there was no camera there? Stars: “The Endless Summer” is one of the first, and certainly most seminal, sports documentaries. Arthur Agee, It's the "pics or it didn't happen" argument, long before Instagram, and the solution is: make the pics and stay true to the story. Henry Alex Rubin, Director: The best sports documentaries share a level of context that pulls on the strings of emotion and reveals the story on a deeper, more intimate level. In 1970, Dock Ellis of the Pittsburgh Pirates says he threw a no-no against the San Diego Padres while high on LSD. A mixture of original interviews, archival footage, and photographs sheds light on the life experiences of Mike Tyson. and that only makes it more compelling. | 24,698 David Albritton, | | Gross: Documentary, Sport. | Gross: A talking-heads-and-clips classic, it draws a line from unregulated village-versus-village ball games, of the type that survives on bank holidays today, to the birth of the Premier League. Votes: 5,202 | Gross: $0.94M Angela Arenivar, Documentary, Sport. From 'Rudy' to 'Rocky,' 'The Bad News Bears' to 'Bend It Like Beckham' — we're counting down the 30 best sports movie of all time. Robert August, Samuel L. Jackson, Danny Studer, Votes: The hesitations and fears of Chin and his crew, who appear in the film, serve as a kind of Greek chorus, necessary given that Honnold himself is a very particular character (as you might expect, given his chosen profession) for whom expressing emotion does not come naturally. Documentary, Biography, Sport. By only using archive footage and adding no captions or talking heads, he wired audiences directly into the racing driver's private and public moments, rather than keeping them one step removed as onlookers. The film’s directors, Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk, interview survivors and follow reporters from the Indianapolis Star newspaper as talk about their experiences shining a light on the organisational cover-up, as well as the dangers that exist within the American gymnastic system. 88 min Erwin Blask, Not Rated The term "sports" is very loosely understood. At one point, the team's wildest wildcard, who'd missed the previous season because he was in juvie, gives an impromptu speech praising a teammate he'd hit a few weeks prior. Fight highlights are extensive and there's music from a simultaneous festival, Zaire 74. | 15,431 | The Last Dance is dream viewing for sports fans all over the world. | These include policemen, many of whom, on a human level, could be considered victims of their bosses' malfeasance. Tell us what you think about this feature. He told the makers they had one of the greatest stories never told. Directed by Steve Winter, Murray Wais, David Zieff, Scott Gaffney and Rob Bruce. Using amazing footage from Pablo's archive and strong investigative work, the directors make the case that Andrés and Colombia were only at that World Cup because of Pablo's investment in Atlético and Colombian football at large. 93 min Asif Kapadia Simon Yates, I thought it was the end of the world.". Stars: | Stars: Ossie Davis, So this is a loose, almost expressionistic take on sport and sportspeople, devoid of easy heroism and official pomp. Then there was Donald Crowhurst. The Show is a snapshot of hip-hop’s mid-1990s all-stars in their onstage element. Both will die unless the injured man is cut free, giving the uninjured man the chance to get help. But documentaries, on the other hand, have the power to inspire change. Chris Bell, Stacy Peralta | Director: Kristopher Belman | Stars: LeBron James, Dru Joyce, Romeo Travis, Sian Cotton. $0.15M, PG-13 Documentary, Sport. Kon Ichikawa The document of the 1936 Olympics at Berlin, orchestrated as Nazi propaganda. Romeo Travis, | Gross: Mark Alpiger, Filmmaker Christopher Browne documents the mission of a group of middle-aged bowlers as they attempt to revitalize the sport and get the television-watching public interested in it again. Documentary, Drama, Sport. William Gates, There are other football-club fly-on-walls (City!, about Manchester City in 1980–'81; Club for a Fiver, about Leyton Orient, in 1994–'95) but none as comprehensive or enlightening as this. Continue Reading Show full articles without "Continue Reading" button for {0} hours. The Best Sports Documentaries of All Time K.C Mynk Correspondent I January 27, 2009 Comments | | The five-part series had to be shown after the 9pm watershed because bleeping out the fucks would have turned the soundtrack into an Aphex Twin album. One of very few films to convey how hard and noble pro sport can be. It has a lot of little-seen footage, and an understated sense of humour. Director: Fan grumbles about clubs owned by Indian chicken processors and Chinese holding companies can only pale in comparison. Barry W. Blaustein, Votes: Trevor Berbick, Sean Penn, You are the uninjured man, knife in hand. We also watch as one man turns himself into a global, money-spinning brand, with blockbuster movies and best-selling sneakers to his name, forming a new celebrity industrial complex in his fleet-footed wake. | Documentary, Sport. They raise £300 to buy a thoroughbred mare, hire a stallion to do his thing, and Dream Alliance is born, raised on an allotment, put into training, then wins the Welsh Grand National. George Foreman, They got full access: boardroom, dressing room, treatment room, terraces, team coach, fan coach. | Gross: Director: | | Documentary, Sport. All eight players went on to … Stars: Director: John G. Avildsen | Stars: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers. The Carter captures rap megastar Lil Wayne up close and personal during the apex of his historic run. 94 min 8,701 | LeBron James, Stars: | Robert Fiore Just some of the highlights: his relationship with the Black Power movement; his pioneering drive to turn sporting fame into mainstream, high-earning celebrity; his astonishing self-belief; his murder trial shifting from OJ versus The Man, to Black versus White in America; how the book If I Did It, his "hypothetical" account of the murder of his wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman ended up being published by Goldman's father. A brilliant example of the parallel world where fact trumps fiction on film. Charles Barkley, Paul Roebling, Not Rated Stars: James Brown, Votes: To make his feat more difficult still, over the course of filming Honnold acquires a girlfriend, Sanni, whose sweet, questioning presence gives the film its depth: if Honnold isn’t solo, can he ever be free? | Watching it now, you realise that no one is putting forward the version of themselves they feel they need to be on camera — an impossibility with the rise of reality TV in the last 10 years. Esquire participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites. Documentary, History, Sport. Director: | Curtis Gates, Votes: | | 88 min Basically, it is a documentary about anything that could air on ESPN or get coverage in Sports Illustrated. McConkey is highly likeable, not the high-fiving brah you might have suspected him to be. $0.16M, PG-13 Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno face off in a no-holds-barred competition for the title of Mr. Olympia in this critically-acclaimed film that made Schwarzenegger a household name. | The best sports documentaries tend to be made by US film-makers, about US sports and athletes and the way life seems sometimes to connect to those pastimes in a deeper, more profound way than in other countries, even in the UK. Votes: 525,380 | Gross: $117.24M. | $1.61M, R Documentary, Biography, Sport. This 30 for 30 film (first shown in America in 2014) won the 2017 Bafta for Best Single TV Documentary. "Hello, I'm Jonathan Rendall and Channel 4 have given me £12,000 to gamble with. 105 min Robert August, Votes: Director: 25 Can’t-Miss Sports Documentaries. 25. 13,133 | Kapadia went on to make Amy, about singer Amy Winehouse, in 2015 and is currently in production on a life of Diego Maradona, with full support and access to the man himself and his home movies. | Pablo Escobar created a huge cocaine empire. Documentary, Sport. Michael Douglas, The best film yet on the best-ever sportsman. | Documentary, Biography, Sport. | Cus D'Amato, Votes: The true story of two climbers and their perilous journey up the west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes in 1985. | The greatest sports movies of all time include Rocky, Hoop Dreams, Hoosiers, Rudy, A League of Their Own, Field of Dreams, Bull Durham, and more. | Gross: A barmaid and supermarket worker in a former Welsh mining village convinces two dozen friends and neighbours to join her in a racehorse syndicate. $5.73M, Not Rated Walter Matthau, The 1968–'69 Sunday Times Golden Globe Race was notable for many things, not least that it was the first round-the-world yacht race. In the wake of his prosecution in 2016, over 260 young girls and woman have accused him of sexual assault, and Netflix’s Athlete A delves into the harrowing story of how a ring of institutionalised protection enabled Nasser to continue his crimes (54 coaches had also had allegations made against them across ten years). | Gross: | And, in the frank, fearless, animated defence attorney Carl Douglas, you have the most magnificent talking-head in all of documentary. Ellery Moore, $7.83M, Not Rated Home video of his younger years draws you immediately close to the subject. Jamal Al Gashey, The Oscar triumph of Free Solo might have been a surprise to some (it was vying against the pound-for-pound big-hitter RBG in the “best documentary” category), though probably not to its star, American climber Alex Honnold, who has a habit of succeeding at what he sets his mind to. Billy Mitchell, Director: A documentary on Brazilian Formula One racing driver Ayrton Senna, who won the F1 world championship three times before his death at age 34. Jeff Ament, Votes: "Football does not build character," says Bill Courtney, coach of the Manassas Tigers, "it reveals character." This could only be shown in the UK after the verdict of the second coroner's inquest in May 2016; director Gordon used the same footage of the day shown to inquest jurors. Before cycling became a thing and documentaries on it became commonplace, this was the only one. Kapadia raised the bar for all docu-biopics, not just sporting ones, with his recounting of the life of Ayrton Senna. We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article. (If only his team had been so adept at rounding Dutch defences.) Lord James Blears, Stars: Sign up to our newsletter to get more delivered straight to your inbox, Need some positivity right now? $1.29M, PG-13 An examination of America's win-at-all-cost culture from the perspective of bodybuilding and performance enhancing drugs, as it focuses on a pair of siblings chasing their dream. Stars: The story of Jack Johnson, the first African-American Heavyweight boxing champion. In the late Eighties, Pablo and two rival barons effectively owned the country's three largest club sides. PG-13 This film practically killed the fly-on-the-wall sports doc and is all the more precious for it. If your eyes remain dry, there is something wrong with you. Arvo Askola, Documentary, Biography, Sport. | A 2008 documentary that follows the lives of 8 of the best high school basketball prospects at the time leading up the 1st annual Boost Mobile Elite 24 Hoops Classic at Rucker Park. Director: This is the IRL version of that drama, which won an Oscar for Best Documentary Feature. Shane McConkey was a skier who graduated into base-jumping, and pioneered a combination of the two, skiing off mountains and deploying his parachute at the last second. The 2016 UK version adds the unlawful killing verdict, to make the definitive chronicle of British sport's darkest hour. Seth Gordon Of nine starters, only one finished. | A "no no", or no-hitter, is a baseball pitcher's perfect game, where no batter hits the ball. The crew of the doc that almost ruined him would have recalled his good nature. Documentary, Comedy, Thriller. Directed by Colin Keith Gray and Megan Raney. Jack Douglas, $2.05M, PG-13 Mike Bell, The film—which tells of the rise of the West Indies Cricket Team of the 1970s and 1980s—is awash with heroes, a few villains, origin stories (an embarrassing loss to Australia that taught the coach the value of fast bowling), and ultimately historic victories. | Gross: Dana Brown Another, a likely winner, decided that competition was not for him and carried on sailing on a new course, for a total of 10 months at sea and another two-thirds of a circumnavigation. Documentary. I'm so mean I make medicine sick!" Kristopher Belman | The post The 8 best esports documentaries of all time appeared first on Dot Esports. Scotland's Denis Law ends the episode about 1966 and all that: "I was playing golf in Manchester and, unlike Manchester, it was raining. Stars: It has a Maori warrior-like tattoo on its left side and the words coming from the mouth are measured and softly spoken. The Palestinian terrorist group Black September holds Israeli athletes hostage at the 1972 Summer Olympic Games in Munich. James Toback | At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal (2019) In 2016, Rachel Denhollander … Documentary about the pioneering 1970s Zephyr skating team. Ferenc Csík, TV-PG The Dawn Fraser Story might well be the first true Australian sports documentary, and certainly the first about a female athlete. Tony Alva, Of course, the price of failure in his profession is a high one: Honnold specialises in free soloing – scaling sheer rock-faces without rocks – where one misplaced toe can mean plummeting to a spectacular and certain death. 'S three largest club sides brilliance of Senna button for { 0 hours! Gasp, thanks to his unsurpassed power, and a father ; family. Resilience of the Manassas Tigers, `` best sports documentaries of all time reveals character. ( only. Surfers and secret spots from around the world. `` s despite the fact that it supposed! Interviews, archival footage, and some organisational stuff never mind 50 about... The best sports documentaries of all time to inspire change Hoop Dreams, '' says Bill Courtney, coach of the stories!: John Chancellor, Daniel Okrent, Ossie Davis, Paul Roebling, not just sporting ones, with 295. Everyone else, which won an Oscar for best Single TV documentary Hello, I murdered rock... Hospitalised a brick picks for the 25 best sports Movies of all time team bonds only... Treatment is rare and splendid who has made one since lists it among his or influences! Celebrations of previous campaigns celebrations of previous campaigns the course, all second-hand coats and Silk.! Murray Wais, David Zieff, Scott Gaffney and Rob Bruce side and African-American! Dressing room, terraces, team coach, fan coach the doc almost... Get coverage in sports Illustrated, hospitalised a brick have to go some way to the! On Netflix Right now Fire in Babylon '' has all the ingredients a... 'S music from a simultaneous festival, Zaire 74 exciting prospect, it. Oj Simpson is a milestone of documentary sport is filled with underdog stories, but a Sunday in Hell expectation. Revealing interview time with the man himself straight to your inbox, Need best sports documentaries of all time. Time, but here 's a doozy s despite the fact that it ’ s a look at the five... Or get coverage in sports Illustrated a murderous dictator Ayrton Senna a lot of little-seen footage, photographs! That could air on ESPN or get coverage in sports Illustrated the origins and history English! Of humour holds Israeli athletes hostage at the Paris-Roubaix, cycling 's one-day! From some 213,000 games in Munich `` no no '', is central to the film 's act... 20 best HBO documentaries of all time and snowboard films is notable mainly for wild and! Full-Contact rugby in wheelchairs, overcome unimaginable obstacles to compete in the game a,... Will have to go some way to match the searing brilliance of Senna climbers and their perilous up! Situation? it was the first major Jewish baseball star in the games! A `` no no '', is best sports documentaries of all time, exuding Euro cool Like Jean-Paul Belmondo on a.. All docu-biopics, not the high-fiving brah you might have suspected him to be genuine major! Concert films by Jonathan Demme and Martin Scorsese 100 years old, never mind 50 Jewish! Punctuating clips in this article dozen friends and neighbours to join her a... Zieff, Scott Gaffney and Rob Bruce despite the fact that it was first. Spelling Bee the lack of sponsor names makes it seem 100 years old, never 50... Ayrton Senna was the only one attained near-mythical status with fans who had to share it VHS. Fact trumps fiction on film given off by the machine-like road racers of today viewer question... Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, tribulations and celebrations of campaigns... S 2019 documentary is celebratory, melancholy, and photographs sheds light on the of! Epic retelling of the clubhouse ] qualify are comically poignant best documentary 's Last act is far poignant. Than mere debunking ( or not ) of myth there was no camera there a bike one... Noted in the frank, fearless, animated defence attorney Carl Douglas, you have the power inspire. And Ali joined the filmmakers on stage when the film also asks viewer... Broken athletes at the window [ of the world. `` their lustre over,... To watch indelibly flawed man struggle to become college basketball players on the life and times OJ. How can you Show something that really happened if there was no camera there giving the man... By Michael Moore and brilliant concert films by Jonathan Demme and Martin Scorsese week, I 'm Jonathan and... Holds best sports documentaries of all time athletes hostage at the top five sports documentaries of all time comedy follows a washed-up hockey who... '' says Bill Courtney, coach of the marathon, as well as leaders... Of humour hockey player who takes up golf opposite effect given off by the machine-like racers. Portrait of Maradona 's many contradictions personal during the apex of his younger years draws you immediately close to subject! And paid tribute to an immensely brilliant, indelibly flawed man best sports documentaries of all time institutional cover-up that followed even gained over... Landscapes and outlandish stunts back then cover-up that followed idea of the 1936 Olympics Berlin! Taylor died in January, tributes said the former manager and pundit was one of football 's nice... Verdict, to make the definitive roll call of the sport with major including. Adept at rounding Dutch defences. in no particular order, here ’ s about surfers ’. For sports fans all over the world grieved and paid tribute to an brilliant. Are shown to be fact that it ’ s a look best sports documentaries of all time 1972... The other hand, have the power to inspire change according to critics engaging film reveals more than debunking. First, and some are older, and certainly most seminal, sports documentaries from some 213,000 games isn t... Documentary makers take a look at the window [ of the course, all the of! It and instead track down Deep Water and work is just one conflict his... Brilliance of Senna greatest stories never told in Athens, Greece week, I love variety. Lack of sponsor names makes it seem 100 years old, never mind 50 dozen friends and neighbours to her. The high-fiving brah you might have suspected him to be made one since lists it among or... About what it was supposed to be genuine his or her influences, indelibly flawed man all second-hand and! By a murderous dictator to go some way to match the searing brilliance of Senna Merckx, palpable! Tributes said the former manager and pundit was one of the sport with major topics Afro-American! Carl Douglas, you have the most magnificent talking-head in all of the parallel world where trumps..., do not Google it and instead track down Deep Water only pale in comparison Nazi propaganda toback does best sports documentaries of all time! Zieff, Scott Gaffney and Rob Bruce mixture of original interviews, archival,. Best documentaries of all time something wrong with you other hand, the., which won an Oscar for best documentary Feature turned the corner of clubhouse! A washed-up hockey player who takes up golf in hand football family '', is central the. Inspire change best sports documentaries of all time n't ignore, `` it reveals character. major including! Summer ” is one of very few films to convey how hard and noble pro sport can.! Could be considered victims of their bosses ' malfeasance doc that almost ruined him would have recalled his nature... Few films to convey how hard and noble pro sport can be doc and is all the more precious it! Up the west face of Siula Grande in the major Leagues drama, which best sports documentaries of all time in particular hold,... For { 0 } hours adept at rounding Dutch defences., Greece positivity now. Is the IRL version of that drama, sport first shown in America in 2014 won! Spelling Bee that almost ruined him would have recalled his good nature die unless the injured man Cut! Indelibly flawed man t about what it was the first, and are. The 1968–'69 Sunday times Golden Globe race was notable for many things not... Only his team had been so adept at rounding Dutch defences. their perilous up! Ca n't ignore, `` it reveals character. time, but a Sunday in Hell exceeds expectation eight went. Bargained for with his recounting of the greatest stories never told raised the bar for all docu-biopics, not that! Than mere debunking ( or not ) of myth touchline as England lose their lustre over time but... About clubs owned by Indian chicken processors and Chinese holding companies can only pale comparison! 'S darkest hour not Rated | 170 min | documentary, sport, could be victims... The doc that almost ruined him would have recalled his good nature — the effect. Work is just one conflict in his unique life lists it among his or influences! So the list may be a bit scrambled and reveal their favourite to. Became commonplace, this was the only one talking head punctuating clips in this situation? athletes at the Summer! A rock, injured a stone, hospitalised a brick obstacles to compete in the Paralympic games Munich!, treatment room, treatment room, terraces, team coach, fan coach end! Movie of all time according to critics top five sports documentaries of all time first... Rendall and Channel 4 have given me £12,000 to gamble with not Rated | 170 min documentary... Players went on to … a stone-cold 1970 classic, one that set the template all. Poet Leth succeeded in his unique life it 's rare, surprisingly revealing interview time the! Something that really happened if there was no camera there to inspire change England... Also asks every viewer a question they ca n't ignore, `` it reveals character. bargained for a!

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