Top 10 Boxing Movies

When was the last time you saw a movie and you felt a jolt of electricity in your fists that you ached to let out?

Boxing movies are the most anticipated films when it comes to sports. Just to make it clear, there is a huge difference between punching someone and boxing in a ring. Mayweather vs Pacquiao was titled as “The Fight of the Century” So yes, be prepared for a very honest and exciting list of movies that represented boxing at its best.

As you know, that scripting a real boxing match is a legal hazard, directors often rephrase and rewrite stories revolving around boxing matches that shook the planet. To name a few, we have Sylvester Stallone, Martin Scorsese, Michael Mann, Ron Howard, and David O. Russell etc. Storyboarding a fictional character and making the audience believe that they have a real heartfelt connection with them is something every viewer craves for.

Here is a perfectly nostalgic boxing movies list.

10. Rocky Balboa (2006)

As much as we all swoon over the amazingness of the movie, we have to make it fit in the list at the end somehow. IMDB has rating of 7.2 for this beautiful movie. It circles around Rocky Balboa played and directed by Sylvester Stallone after he comes out of a 30 year retirement. It may seem like a stretch after that brain damage story line but for everyone who grew up watching Rocky taking down everyone, this movie was a hit.

9. The Hurricane (1999)

The Hurricane can be termed as one of the masterpieces by Denzel Washington. Every movie this guy picks up turns into gold. Denzel plays part of a top ranked boxer called Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter. He gets wrongfully accused for murder and years later, someone inspired by him starts to fight for him in the court of law to prove his innocence. Bob Dylan wrote the phenomenal song, ‘The Hurricane’ in protest of the injustice. IMDB gaveThe Hurricane a shining 7.6.

8. Cinderella Man (2005)

8 out of 10 rated movie by IMDB tells the story of James Braddock in which Russell Crowe stars as “The Bulldog of Bergen” from Jersey. Due to his hand injury, he is unable to fight and when you combine this with the great depression, you have poverty vs will power of a man who is ready to risk it all. This movie of a washed-up boxer was directed by Ron Howard.

7. The Fighter (2010)

This is a relatively modern film in the list we have discussed so far. We have big names like Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale and the gorgeous Amy Adams. This movie is a perfect example of family drama mixed with jealousy and passion. While one brother tries to live a normal life, the other feels left out in the glory of his brother. Christian Bale won an academy award for this movie as well. IMDB rates The Fighter at 7.9.

6. Million Dollar Baby (2004)

Clint Eastwood directing this terrific movie made it a 100 times better than it should’ve been, if someone else was to direct it. Hilary Swank plays the role of Maggie Fitzgerald, a young girl that loves to fight. This film is interesting because it brought about the advent of women fighting in boxing rings too. Morgan Freeman, as always, turned this movie into a real time winner. It won 4 academy awards as well.

5. The Great White Hope (1970)

Woah that was a huge era shift. Trust me, when it comes to boxing, no era can accommodate the greatness behind boxing itself. Jack Johnson stars James Earl Jones in the lead role. It depicts racism as a hurdle between a black champion boxer and the white establishment. It raised a lot of eyes in the international film industry. This film was perfectly scripted around the struggles of life itself. IMDB rates this movie at 7.

4. Lights Out (2011)

Lights Out is a TV series that could’ve been a fantastic movie. But when it comes to TV directors, what can you possibly think of. This series is about a former heavyweight boxing champion played by Holt McCallany who struggles with his passion to fight and with his identity crisis. Beyond the outstanding plot, Lights Out begins to get perfectly nuanced and more attention-grabbing with each episode. Overall, this series has one flaw: It wasn’t a movie. That’s it!

3. Creed (2015)

Creed was directed by Ryan Coogler and partially sponsored by RDX Sports. It represented exactly how a fight should be, Brutal and Elegant. Michael B. Jordan played the role of Rocky’s opponent, Apollo Creed’s son. This movie brought a business of over $81,157,671 worldwide and is rated 7.7 by IMDB.

2. Rocky (1976)

This right here is the best movie Stallone ever did. It defined his character, it idolized the name and when there was no other boxing movie to look up to, and there was Rocky. It can easily be titled as the most inspirational films of all times. It had a production budget of $ 1,000,000 and internationally, It went up to $225,000,000.  This movie was the start of a franchise too beautiful to end.

1. Raging Bull

Self-destruction seems to be the perfect description for the character De Niro played in Raging Bull. He plays the role of an emotionally unstable and anger driven boxer called Jake LaMotta who rises to the peak of his career because of his constant fight within the ring and within himself. It sits on the throne of 8.1 on IMDB right next to Rocky.