25 best sports movies, ranked by the dust in your eye

7. Remember the Titans (2000)

Directed by Boaz Yakin
Starring Denzel Washington, Wood Harris, and Ryan Hurst

Like The Natural, Remember the Titans feels more apocryphal than factual. However, as opposed to the classic baseball fable, Titans is a fact-based drama. However, not long into its runtime, it becomes clear that the film’s heavy-handed lessons about racism and teamwork are far too neat and obvious to be authentic. Nevertheless, the film’s inspirational power remains undiminished on the back of its strong performance and admirably bittersweet ending.

Set in 1971, the film takes place at a Virginia high school that has only recently become desegregated. In an attempt to defuse rising racial tensions, the school hires the black Coach Herman Boone (Washington) to bring the bitterly divided team together. Though he is initially met with intense resistance, Boone’s relentless drilling and talent for giving inspirational speeches wears the Titans down. Now working as a cohesive unit, the racially diverse team goes on a record-setting winning streak. But when it comes time to play for the state championship, a devastating car accident threatens to undercut the season’s fairytale conclusion.

In the film’s best scene, defensive end Julius Campbell (Harris) goes to visit severely injured linebacker Gary Bertier (Hurst) in the hospital. Initially, Campbell is denied entry on the basis of his not being family. However, Bertier quietly underscores the film’s big theme by correcting a nurse about his connection to the young man who has become his brother in all the ways that really matter. If your heart doesn’t melt during that scene, you very well might not have one.