Well with The Express coming out this year, I thought I would rank the "based on a true story" FB movies of the past. I will use this list to compare The Express when I review the movie. Now I am not a big time movie goer, so I havent seen every FB movie. For instance I havent seen We Are Marshall. It is a nice story but I have no desire to see it or Matthew McConaughey act. I hope that The Express isnt viewed in a similar fashion by people outside the SU family. I know The Express is a big deal to all of us here in Orangeland, but will anyone else care?
Well here is my list:
1. Rudy
I know a lot of people are ND haters so they may not like this movie. However I grew up an ND fan so I liked the movie. And no I am not a front runner. I first started following ND in 1987. That year they were 8-4 and it was their first winning season since 1984. So they werent the ND in their hey day. Also I grew up in Central Jersey. There was no real D1 team around to root for and ND was NYCs adopted CFB team. The closest school was PSU and I hated PSU. So I really had no choice. Also the only games ever shown on TV at the time were ND, PSU, Michigan, Miami (hated them), and FSU (hated them). So who else but ND would I follow?
Anyway this all ended thanks to HS FB and attending SU. I used to never miss a game, but when I joined the HS FB team I rarely had the chance to watch ND. And back then I didnt have the internet so I couldnt really follow the team closely. Thanks Al Gore for this wonderful invention. Then I went off to SU and fell in love with the OrangeMEN. I had always been a casual fan of SU FB. I remember McPherson, Graves, David Bavaro, the Missle, coming up short vs Miami, etc. And I always followed SU BBall closely so I had a sports history with SU. Which means it didnt take long for me to dump ND and become an Orange lover. It is only natural to feel allegiance to the school you are attending. Well unless you are Troy Nunes.
Flashback to Spring 2000. This is after the 1999 season where Mr Nunes split time at QB with Madei Williams. So as I was walking by Archibold Gym and who happens to walk out? Troy Nunes wearing a friggin PSU hat! I could not believe my eyes. The SU QB was not only wearing a hat of another College, it was SUs long time rival! I know that the kid grew up in PA but he was a friggin academic JR at the time. Shouldnt any students allegiance be with SU by then, let alone the teams QB?
You know in a way Nunes was kinda like Rudy. Both were undersized players not expected to be able to play D1 ball. Well except that for Nunes his ND is PSU. So with that I will now give my reasons as to why Rudy is my #1 movie. First it was a dream for me growing up to play for ND, so I could relate. But even if you take ND out of the picture, it is a great story. The undersized kid who follows his dream and shows great determination as he fights to over come a slew of obstacles. He has that never give up attitude which is inspirational. Then you have to shed a tear at the touching happy ending. And on top of all of this you have a fat John Favreau and Roc's speeches and clapping (Charles Dutton). What else could you ask for?
2. Remember the Titans
This is another nice story but adds the star power of Denzel Washington. The team has to deal with racism first within the FB family(players/coaches) and then outside their FB family (town/opponents/refs). The team is able to work together to overcome all. In the end it shows that it doesnt matter if you are white or black, all that matters is that you win and then everyone will like you. That is the moral of this wonderful film.
3. Invincible
Another feel good story about a guy who hits rock bottom and then ends up living out a dream playing for the Iggles. Apparently this is a true story but I find it hard to believe as no one dreams of playing for the Iggles. Not even their fans want to play for those losers. And on top of that the films biggest moment comes against my Giants. Despite all of this fiction it was a decent film. I wasnt a fan of the ending though. It kinda just came to an abrupt conclusion. It made you say, "Thats it? Its over?"It was a nice inspirational story but seemed more like a made for TV movie. And we never got to see the kinky 40 Year Old Virgin girl (Elizabeth Banks) get it on with Dirk Diggler (Marky Mark).
4. Friday Night Lights
I really dont remember a whole lot about this film and often confuse it with Varsity Blues (which is also supposedly inspired by the Permian Panthers). I do know that Billy Bob Thornton and Tim McGraw were in the film and that isnt a good thing. I also remember that one character was named Boobie Miles. Now you would think that name would be for someone of Dolly Partons stature. But instead it was the name of a HS RB, strange indeed. Anyway the film is about a FB crazed town in Texas (I know redundant) and the HS FB teams season. Not a whole lot to it but it did inspire a TV show, which I have never seen. As you can tell I wasnt a big fan of Friday Night Lights and am pretty sure Varsity Blues was better.
And that is the end of the list. I have only seen 4 "based on a true story" FB movies. So even if The Express is awful, it will make my Top 5 All Time.
Well here is my list:
1. Rudy
I know a lot of people are ND haters so they may not like this movie. However I grew up an ND fan so I liked the movie. And no I am not a front runner. I first started following ND in 1987. That year they were 8-4 and it was their first winning season since 1984. So they werent the ND in their hey day. Also I grew up in Central Jersey. There was no real D1 team around to root for and ND was NYCs adopted CFB team. The closest school was PSU and I hated PSU. So I really had no choice. Also the only games ever shown on TV at the time were ND, PSU, Michigan, Miami (hated them), and FSU (hated them). So who else but ND would I follow?
Anyway this all ended thanks to HS FB and attending SU. I used to never miss a game, but when I joined the HS FB team I rarely had the chance to watch ND. And back then I didnt have the internet so I couldnt really follow the team closely. Thanks Al Gore for this wonderful invention. Then I went off to SU and fell in love with the OrangeMEN. I had always been a casual fan of SU FB. I remember McPherson, Graves, David Bavaro, the Missle, coming up short vs Miami, etc. And I always followed SU BBall closely so I had a sports history with SU. Which means it didnt take long for me to dump ND and become an Orange lover. It is only natural to feel allegiance to the school you are attending. Well unless you are Troy Nunes.
Flashback to Spring 2000. This is after the 1999 season where Mr Nunes split time at QB with Madei Williams. So as I was walking by Archibold Gym and who happens to walk out? Troy Nunes wearing a friggin PSU hat! I could not believe my eyes. The SU QB was not only wearing a hat of another College, it was SUs long time rival! I know that the kid grew up in PA but he was a friggin academic JR at the time. Shouldnt any students allegiance be with SU by then, let alone the teams QB?
You know in a way Nunes was kinda like Rudy. Both were undersized players not expected to be able to play D1 ball. Well except that for Nunes his ND is PSU. So with that I will now give my reasons as to why Rudy is my #1 movie. First it was a dream for me growing up to play for ND, so I could relate. But even if you take ND out of the picture, it is a great story. The undersized kid who follows his dream and shows great determination as he fights to over come a slew of obstacles. He has that never give up attitude which is inspirational. Then you have to shed a tear at the touching happy ending. And on top of all of this you have a fat John Favreau and Roc's speeches and clapping (Charles Dutton). What else could you ask for?
2. Remember the Titans
This is another nice story but adds the star power of Denzel Washington. The team has to deal with racism first within the FB family(players/coaches) and then outside their FB family (town/opponents/refs). The team is able to work together to overcome all. In the end it shows that it doesnt matter if you are white or black, all that matters is that you win and then everyone will like you. That is the moral of this wonderful film.
3. Invincible
Another feel good story about a guy who hits rock bottom and then ends up living out a dream playing for the Iggles. Apparently this is a true story but I find it hard to believe as no one dreams of playing for the Iggles. Not even their fans want to play for those losers. And on top of that the films biggest moment comes against my Giants. Despite all of this fiction it was a decent film. I wasnt a fan of the ending though. It kinda just came to an abrupt conclusion. It made you say, "Thats it? Its over?"It was a nice inspirational story but seemed more like a made for TV movie. And we never got to see the kinky 40 Year Old Virgin girl (Elizabeth Banks) get it on with Dirk Diggler (Marky Mark).
4. Friday Night Lights
I really dont remember a whole lot about this film and often confuse it with Varsity Blues (which is also supposedly inspired by the Permian Panthers). I do know that Billy Bob Thornton and Tim McGraw were in the film and that isnt a good thing. I also remember that one character was named Boobie Miles. Now you would think that name would be for someone of Dolly Partons stature. But instead it was the name of a HS RB, strange indeed. Anyway the film is about a FB crazed town in Texas (I know redundant) and the HS FB teams season. Not a whole lot to it but it did inspire a TV show, which I have never seen. As you can tell I wasnt a big fan of Friday Night Lights and am pretty sure Varsity Blues was better.
And that is the end of the list. I have only seen 4 "based on a true story" FB movies. So even if The Express is awful, it will make my Top 5 All Time.
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