Top 5 Sports Films

The purest nostalgia pick, for a summer that's all friendship and ridiculous schemes to get the ball back. A special place in his heart.

Watching Alex Honnold climb with no ropes had his heart rate up from the couch. A sucker's pick for a mountaineering guy.

The original underdog story, not the sequel on Matt's list. You have to take your shot when you get it, even if you can't control the outcome.

Aaron Sorkin's tight dialogue and Brad Pitt's aging manager trying to stay relevant on his own terms.

A lesson for right now about how much you can actually control. Rudy half-convinces you hard work alone gets you there.

Sean Astin's long-shot walk-on story, carried by a Jerry Goldsmith score he's listened to more than almost any other movie soundtrack.

Russell Crowe's Depression-era boxer clawing back to the heavyweight title. The sports film that gets him the most emotional.

Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton as estranged, MMA-fighting brothers with Nick Nolte as their alcoholic dad. A little contrived, but raw in the emotions.

Brad Pitt's Billy Beane trying to redeem a fading career by playing the numbers, in a Sorkin script he calls spectacular end to end.

America versus the Soviet Union. He rewatched it this past year and loves it for what it's meant in his life, even if the original Rocky is the better film.