This weekend, Carla Gugino and Ellen Burstyn storm the multiplex with The Mighty Macs, an inspiring action drama about how women's basketball coach Cathy Rush (Gugino) trained a small Catholic college team to unlikely victory in the '70s. In celebration of this upcoming show of cinematic she-sportsmanship, Movieline has compiled (what we consider to be) the nine best women's sports movies.
National Velvet (1944)
Director: Clarence Brown
Stars: Elizabeth Taylor, Mickey Rooney and Donald Crisp
Sport: Horse racing
Why It Is Awesome: A 12-year-old Elizabeth Taylor stars as Velvet Brown, a spunky tomboy who comes into possession of an equally vivacious horse, Pie, and trains him for the Grand National steeplechase with the help of a hired hand, Mi (Mickey Rooney). After an unexpected turn of events, Velvet takes the place of her jockey and wins the race to the delight of the public who declares her a national treasure. Although Taylor's star-making film isn't as high-impact as the other sports films on its list, it features a fearless female willing to risk injury and exhaustion for victory for her precious Pie.
Ice Castles (1978)
Director: Donald Wrye
Stars: Lynn-Holly Johnson, Robby Benson and Colleen Dewhurst
Sport: Figure skating
Why It Is Awesome: Scoff all you want but if you can't be inspired by a beautiful, figure-skating heroine who must re-learn her passion after losing eyesight -- only to perform a flawless program thanks to the support of her loved ones -- then, I don't know what to do. Other than to say that a packed arena will probably never stomp their feet in unison to get you on the ice so that they can adoringly hurl flowers at you.
A League of Their Own (1992)
Director: Penny Marshall
Stars: Geena Davis, Lori Petty and Tom Hanks
Sport: Baseball
Why It Is Awesome: Comedy, drama, sibling tension, Tom Hanks playing an alcoholic, historical significance, Madonna, Rosie O'Donnell in a skirt -- this charming Penny Marshall feature about the All-American Girls' Professional Baseball League has it all. Even though we care more about spirit and fortitude on this list than actual "wins," it's worth noting that A League of Their Own is the most successful movie ranked here, having grossed over $130 million worldwide.
Bring It On (2000)
Director: Peyton Reed
Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Eliza Dushku and Jesse Bradford
Sport: Cheerleading
Why It Is Awesome: It is an unabashed fluff comedy that you can't resist watching every time it replays on cable television. Starring Kirsten Dunst and Eliza Dushku as enemies-turned-cheer frenemies, Bring It On's high school clique takes its sport dead seriously -- so seriously that it introduces a choreographer named Sparky to build a new number around "spirit fingers." It's Mean Girls with starched uniforms and without heavy-handed lessons about friendship.
Girlfight (2000)
Director: Karyn Kusama
Stars: Michelle Rodriguez, Santiago Douglas and Jaime Tirelli
Sport: Boxing
Why It Is Awesome: If you're looking for a female-driven sports film that doesn't end with a romantic kiss and a team of cute cheerleaders singing "Mickey," look no further than this gritty drama about a troubled teenager who channels her aggression into boxing. Michelle Rodriguez is not so much a pretty lead who can score a winning goal without breaking a sweat or mussing her hair, but a rugged competitor who literally packs a punch.
Bend It Like Beckham (2002)
Director: Gurinder Chadha
Stars: Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightley and Jonathan Rhys Meyers
Sport: Soccer
Why It Is Awesome: Bend It Like Beckham combines sports, romance and a dash of soccer mom comedy in this enjoyable coming-of-age movie. Although underdog sports films all seem to feel the same, this one is original and features a pre-Love Actually Keira Knightley.
Blue Crush (2002)
Director: John Stockwell
Stars: Kate Bosworth, Michelle Rodriguez and Matthew Davis
Sport: Surfing
Why It Is Awesome: Much like Bring It On, the beauty of this guilty pleasure movie is that it knows it is a guilty pleasure movie. It features a trio of friends who have two very crucial things in common: they look great in bikinis and they dream of surfing Hawaii's famed North Shore. In addition to inspiring some viewers to learn to surf (or at least, think about learning how to surf), it is rumored that the film helped inspire an actual women's heat in the Pipeline Competition.
Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Director: Clint Eastwood
Stars: Hilary Swank and Clint Eastwood
Sport: Boxing
Why It Is Awesome: A rags-to-ring sports story, this Clint Eastwood-directed tearjerker features Hilary Swank (who won an Oscar for her performance) as a small-town boxer who is reluctantly trained by a gruff, under-appreciated trainer (Eastwood). It's less about inspiration than a beautiful, well-acted (and slightly depressing) story.
Whip It (2009)
Director: Drew Barrymore
Stars: Ellen Page, Drew Barrymore and Kristen Wiig
Sport: Roller Derby
Why It Is Awesome: A sports movie for misfits, this Drew Barrymore-directed picture chronicles the the adventures of Bliss Cavendar (Ellen Page), a small town beauty queen who ditches her evening gown for elbow pads and joins the local underdog roller derby team, the Hurl Scouts. Not only will Whip It make team sports sound less frightening to the athletically disinclined, it'll challenge them to think of better derby nicknames than Maggie Mayhem, Bloody Holly, Rosa Sparks, Smashley Simpson and Iron Maven.