Boxing movies have long been a staple of entertainment and a firm favourite among movie-goers throughout the world, ever since the original Rocky movie, starring Sylvester Stallone as the Italian Stallion, first arrived in cinemas.
Since then, Hollywood writers and directors have looked to the professional boxing ring for inspiration. With that said, let’s dive straight in to reveal five of the best boxing movies ever made.
Why are boxing movies so popular?
The most iconic boxing movies of all time typically offer compelling narratives, and the main protagonist usually starts out as the underdog, having to overcome many challenges, such as adversity and race.
The lead character also often undergoes a huge physical and mental change throughout the movie and has to struggle against many other societal barriers.
The very nature of boxing itself provides a powerful visual display of two fighters giving it their all in the ring, using their physical prowess and strategic fighting skills to come out on top and defeat their opponent.
In other words, boxing films resonate with moviegoers because of their strong themes and underlying narratives that many people can relate to, understand, and find interesting.
Boxing movies also tend to evoke a range of emotions and remain in our memories long after watching them. It’s a sport that millions of people worldwide like to watch on television or on their preferred PC or mobile device, and it’s also now one of the most bet-on sports in the world.
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Top 5 boxing movies every sports fan should check out
Over the past fifty or so years, several epic boxing movies have been made that will long be remembered by the people who watch them. Many have also become a huge part of pop culture.
There has long been a debate among boxing fans who love movies as to whether Rocky is better than Raging Bull, or, for example, is Rocky III better than Rocky II, and so on, and these debates will continue for many more years.
Although they are about boxing, the other underlying narratives and themes that both movies depict are completely distinct.
Without further ado, the best 5 boxing movies of all time that offer a unique blend of relatable struggles, intense action, and compelling human drama are the following hit titles:
- Name: Rocky. Year released: 1976. Stars: Sylvester Stallone
- Name: Raging Bull. Year released: 1980. Stars Robert De Niro
- Name: Million Dollar Baby: Year released: 2004. Stars: Hilary Swank
- Name: Cinderella Man. Year released: 2005. Stars: Russell Crowe
- Name: The Fighter. Year released: 2010. Stars: Mark Wahlberg
If you enjoy watching any of these iconic boxing movies and want more suggestions, then you also need to check out several other hit titles, such as The Hurricane (1999), The Boxer (1997), Ali (2001), Fat City (1972), Girlfight (2000), and When We Were Kings (1996 – documentary).
Final thoughts
Boxing movies tend to evoke a range of emotions and stay with us long after watching them. These days, it’s easy to find them on various trusted movie streaming platforms, so if you want to see one or more of these movies right now, try services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Paramount+, AppleTV+, and/or Disney+.
To watch any of these boxing movies, you would need to subscribe to one of these platforms and pay an annual/monthly subscription fee, so always check which films they have available before signing up anywhere, just in case you sign up and then find out that none of these boxing movies are available on that movie streaming platform.
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