X
- 1986
- PG
- Orion Pictures
- 1 h 54 m
- 1986
- PG
- Orion Pictures
- 1 h 54 m
Summary A man (Hackman) gets a last-chance job coaching a small-town Indiana high-school basketball team and faces the dual challenge of bringing this underdog team to the 1951 state championship and redeeming himself from a mysterious past. (MGM)
Directed By: David Anspaugh
Written By: Angelo Pizzo
- 1986
- PG
- Orion Pictures
- 1 h 54 m
- 1986
- PG
- Orion Pictures
- 1 h 54 m
Hoosiers
77
8.2
Where to Watch
Summary A man (Hackman) gets a last-chance job coaching a small-town Indiana high-school basketball team and faces the dual challenge of bringing this underdog team to the 1951 state championship and redeeming himself from a mysterious past. (MGM)
Directed By: David Anspaugh
Written By: Angelo Pizzo
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 13 Critic Reviews
77
85% Positive
11 Reviews
11 Reviews
8% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
8% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 13 Critic Reviews
77
85% Positive
11 Reviews
11 Reviews
8% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
8% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
In the way it combines sports with human nature, it reminded me of another wonderful Indiana sports movie, "Breaking Away." It's a movie that is all heart.
It's as engaging, as modest, as utterly American and as thrilling as the true-life story it's based on. [11 Dec 1986, Calendar, p.6-1]
User Score
Universal Acclaim
Based on 69 User Ratings
8.2
84% Positive
58 Ratings
58 Ratings
12% Mixed
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
4% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
User Score
Universal Acclaim
Based on 69 User Ratings
8.2
84% Positive
58 Ratings
58 Ratings
12% Mixed
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
4% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
Out of all the sports movies this is one that if I see on, or listed as a streaming choice I end up watching again and again. It has a great cast, and it makes you long for a time long forgotten. No iphones, kids called adults sir and ma'am, and there was no drug epidemic killing our loved ones. It makes you feel sad for how much we've lost, from how much technology we've gained.
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A small high school in a little town in rural Indiana, a broken down coach, a former player now the town drunk; doesn't sound like the makings of a classic. As with most "down on their luck" movies, everyone gets a second chance. And this movie is special because most take that second chance and succeed. At the end of the movie, you see a photo on the wall of the real coach and players. What! you mean this is a true story! I don't have many DVDs but this one is in my collection.
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Yet much of the movie's validity stems from time and place recreated with such authenticity that you can sense the wet chill in the morning air and the new wax pungent on the old gym floor. [27 Feb 1987, Weekend, p.n29]
This film's very lack of surprise and sophistication accounts for a lot of its considerable charm.
The film clearly functions as wish-fulfillment for the kind of people who are nostalgic about all-white basketball, leaving a nasty aftertaste.
As manipulative as a charmer with a snake, and twice as much fun... Shameless, yes, but open your eyes, close your mind, sit back and enjoy - 'cause it feels so good.
What matters most is feeding white-bread fantasies (the film is set in the slow-footed 50s, when blacks are only a rumor and nobody's ever heard of slam 'n' jam) and laying on the inspirational corn.
The quintessential feel-good sports drama, this first part in director David Anspaugh and screenwriter Angelo Pizzo's legendary, Indiana-centric sports duology is widely regarded as being one of the greatest sports films ever made. After finally seeing "Hoosiers," I'm hard pressed to disagree. This is not only an infectiously earnest, rousing portrait of small town sports and big time feats, it's an incredibly sophisticated narrative, with numerous subplots and things to say. From the overall uber-narrative involving the team and its plight to take state, to the protagonist's surprisingly apt and timely redemption arc, "Hoosiers" succeeds in cultivating a real sense of intimacy through showcasing all the textured characters and conflicts about town. The movie also never wastes our time, giving us a thoroughly satisfying conclusion to nearly every idea, yarn and loose end introduced throughout its runtime. Truly shocked and impressed with how well this one aged. It's an unmitigated delight.
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Hopper’s character’s own story was moving. The team is cheerful and passionate. The good-hearted Norman delivers intimate motivational speeches. Ultimately, what is most important to Norman is not winning the game, but gaining people’s trust and respect, becoming a person people believe in and look up to.
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It may be sentimental, like many sports dramas, but with 'Hoosiers', that's not such a bad thing. It's hard not to get caught up in an underdog story, and this one is carried by the performances by acting titans Gene Hackman and Dennis Hopper. The rest of the cast fills in their roles with grace. It's compelling but it doesn't veer off into being mawkish.
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I don't care what anyone says. I couldn't wait for this to end. Hackneyed, corny and unrewarding.
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[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]
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Production Company
Cinema '84,
Hemdale
Release Date Nov 14, 1986
Duration 1 h 54 m
Rating PG
Tagline It'll go straight to your heart.
Awards
Academy Awards, USA
• 2 Nominations
Golden Globes, USA
• 1 Nomination
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
