Hoosiers (1986)
Average Rating: 7.5/10
Reviews Counted: 43
Fresh: 38 | Rotten: 5
It may adhere to the sports underdog formula, but Hoosiers has been made with such loving craft, and features such excellent performances, that it's hard to resist.
Average Rating: 6.9/10
Critic Reviews: 10
Fresh: 8 | Rotten: 2
It may adhere to the sports underdog formula, but Hoosiers has been made with such loving craft, and features such excellent performances, that it's hard to resist.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.7/5
User Ratings: 49,330
My Rating
Movie Info
Hoosiers tells the true story of a group of underdogs who become champions. Set in the 1950s, Hoosiers is about a hard-luck, unemployed college basketball coach (Gene Hackman) who gets a chance to coach a small-town Indiana high-school basketball team. Facing resentment from the community and the team itself, Hackman manages to inspire his young athletes, leading them to the state championship with the help of the assistant coach (Dennis Hopper), who happens to be a recovering alcoholic. ~
Jan 1, 1989 Wide
Dec 9, 1997
Hemdale Film Corporation
Watch It Now
Cast
-
Gene Hackman
Coach Norman Dale -
Barbara Hershey
Myra Fleener -
Dennis Hopper
Shooter -
Sheb Wooley
Cletus -
Fern Persons
Opal Fleener -
Brad Boyle
Whit -
Steve Hollar
Rade -
Brad Long
Buddy -
David Neidorf
Evertt -
Kent Poole
Merle -
Wade Schenck
Ollie -
Scott Summers
Strap -
Marius Valainis
Jimmy -
Gloria Dorson
Millie -
Rich Komenich
Reporter -
Chelcie Ross
George -
Robert Sutton
Reporter -
Robert Swan
Rollin -
Robert F. Boyle
Referee - Oolitic -
Mike Dalzell
Carl -
Wil Dewitt
Reverend Doty -
Eric Gilliom
J. June -
Michael O'Guinne
Rooster -
Larua Robling
Loetta -
Michael Sassone
Preacher Purl -
Sam Smiley
Referee - Cedar Knob -
Ken Strunk
Referee - Dugger -
John Robert Thompson
Sheriff Finley -
John E. Blazier
Spectator -
-
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All Critics (43) | Top Critics (10) | Fresh (44) | Rotten (6) | DVD (25)
Hackman is wonderful as an inarticulate man tense with the struggle to curb a flaring, mysterious anger.
Shameless, yes, but open your eyes, close your mind, sit back and enjoy.
Bobby Knight would not be amused, though Tark the Shark might've had a good laugh at the naive masquerade.
Basketball movies don't get any better.
Pic belongs to Hackman, but Dennis Hopper gets another opportunity to put in a showy turn as a local misfit.
Top CriticCloyingly nostalgic.
An enjoyable, if conventional and manipulative small-town sports melodrama, boasting strong turns from Gene Hackman and Dennis Hopper, who received his only acting nomination for his part.
A tale of heroic sportsmanship.
The kind of corny and manipulative pic that makes me glad I'm not a basketball fan.
The filmmakers are at the top of their game.
[A] compelling, enjoyable yarn.
The setting in early 1950s Indiana adds nice texture to the story, but the endless games with the usual ups and downs outstay their welcome.
It should come as little surprise that this solid, sentimental movie about basketball is set in Indiana, where babies are given roundballs before they get rattles.
Barely a single frame of this movie is less than compelling.
Barely a single frame of this movie is less than compelling.
...it's easy enough to see why Hoosiers has become one of the most endearing sports movies in cinematic history.
Any list of the best sports movies has to include Hoosiers.
Audience Reviews for Hoosiers
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Latest News on Hoosiers
November 14, 2011:
Hoosiers Turns 25Twenty-five years ago today, Gene Hackman led a squad of scrappy underdogs to sports film...
April 5, 2010:
Hoosiers Actor's One Big ShotHe only had four lines in the movie, but Maris Vilainis' part in "Hoosiers" included the climactic...
March 27, 2008:
March Madness at RT! Ten Great Hoops MoviesWe're in the midst of yet another exciting NCAA tournament and one of the most exciting NBA seasons...
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"They needed a second chance to finish first."
Hoosiers is one of the most manipulative films you'll ever see. Everything the movie does is designed around manipulating the audience as much as possible. Every foul seems to be against Hickory. The referees seem very one sided towards the opponent. The townspeople are against the coach. The underdog story is amped up twentyfold here and no ones hiding that fact. Yet, unlike other films, the manipulation here doesn't piss me off. It seems almost necessary, while in other films, it seems all to unnecessary.
When I was a young kid, my whole life was sports. I wouldn't watch a movie unless it had something to do with sports. Hoosiers was one of my favorites. I haven't watched it in probably 8 of 9 years, except for glimpses on the television, so reuniting with it was special and enjoyable. The film is very heartfelt in all regards. While it is a story about an underdog team who makes it to the state championship; it is more about second chances then anything else. Coach Dale was suspended from his collegiate coaching job and hasn't coached in something like 10 years. This is his second chance. There's a drunk father, who knows a lot about basketball, who gets a second chance when Coach Dale asks him to help out. A player walks out during the first practice, but gets a second chance when the coach allows him back on the team. Another player doesn't listen to his coach and gets benched, but gets a second chance when he is allowed to play again. The second chance theme is all over this film. It's basically a walking advertisement for the saying, "Everyone deserves a second chance" and just about everyone in the film gets one.
Hoosiers is a film that is just a good time to watch. You really find yourself cheering for the team, which is a trait of a good sports oriented movie, like Friday Night Lights. If you don't feel like a fan of the team who is being filmed then the film has failed. You'll definitely cheer for this team, and if you don't, you probably don't have a heart. The movie has some really good performances from Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey, and Dennis Hopper. All in all, it's a one of a kind sports drama, that although predictable and as I said earlier, highly manipulative, is one you should be able to enjoy time and time again.