There is, as they say, no accounting for taste, and that axiom is often demonstrated when it comes to the way people feel about motion pictures.
Movie reviews are everywhere these days — in every major newspaper (both on paper and digitally), on TV, on specialty forums like Rotten Tomatoes and iMDb, on YouTube and TikTok…. Some readers devour reviews, using them as guides to films worth spending time and money on. Others might only glance at them, just to glean the basic plot of something they may or may not want to see, or learn who the stars are. Some might never read them at all.
But people who review movies regularly, whether longtime professionals or earnest newcomers to the game, tend to bring critical analysis to their work, based on accumulated knowledge of cinematic history and on their own cultural preferences, and they may not always speak to the tastes of the movie-going public. And it’s the people buying the tickets who are the ultimate arbiters of the medium — not necessarily judging aesthetic merit but favoring films that excite, amuse, or otherwise stimulate them. That’s why it’s not uncommon to find huge gulfs between the ratings given by the pros and those assigned by audiences.
Sports movies are a genre that often sees particularly notable differences of opinion, because they can easily fall into cliché — the troubled athlete who finds salvation by coaching a losing team, that team improbably winning the big game (or losing it but gaining self-respect) — of the kind that critics may scoff at but that viewers often find enthralling and inspiring. (If you do follow the critics and like sports flicks, you should consider this list of the best football movies ever made.)
To determine the sports movies audiences loved but critics hated, 24/7 Tempo reviewed data on audience and critic reception from Rotten Tomatoes. Films were ranked based on the difference between a film’s Tomatometer score — the percentage of professional critic reviews on Rotten Tomatoes that are positive — and average audience score. Only films with at least five critics reviews were considered. Films with audience scores below 70% and Tomatometer scores above 50% were excluded. Cast information is from IMDb.
You’ll find some familiar names in the casts of some of these films — for instance, Sylvester Stallone (represented by “Rocky IV”), Channing Tatum, Adam Sandler, and Morgan Freeman — along with a host of lesser-known performers. Some of the movies here might have escaped your attention altogether, or just not interested you in the first place, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give at least a few of them a try. Forget the critics. It’s what you think that counts.
Scroll down for a list of sports movies fans loved but critics hated:
25. Best of the Best (1989)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 72% (22,816 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 5% (05 reviews)
- Starring: Eric Roberts, James Earl Jones, Sally Kirkland
24. BASEketball (1998)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 74% (196,418 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 52% (52 reviews)
- Starring: Trey Parker, Matt Stone, Dian Bachar
23. Rocky IV (1985)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 75% (325,793 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 48% (48 reviews)
- Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young
22. She’s the Man (2006)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 79% (607,681 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 114% (114 reviews)
- Starring: Amanda Bynes, Laura Ramsey, Channing Tatum
21. The Waterboy (1998)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 71% (910,858 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 76% (76 reviews)
- Starring: Adam Sandler, Kathy Bates, Henry Winkler
20. Chasing Mavericks (2012)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 70% (18,991 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 81% (81 reviews)
- Starring: Jonny Weston, Gerard Butler, Elisabeth Shue
19. Green Street Hooligans (2005)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 87% (219,919 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 64% (64 reviews)
- Starring: Elijah Wood, Charlie Hunnam, Claire Forlani
18. Stick It (2006)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 73% (320,983 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 99% (99 reviews)
- Starring: Missy Peregrym, Jeff Bridges, Vanessa Lengies
17. Radio (2003)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 79% (171,053 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 122% (122 reviews)
- Starring: Cuba Gooding Jr., Ed Harris, Debra Winger
16. The Football Factory (2004)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 83% (57,977 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 8% (08 reviews)
- Starring: Danny Dyer, Frank Harper, Tamer Hassan
15. The Champ (1979)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 82% (7,717 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 22% (22 reviews)
- Starring: Jon Voight, Faye Dunaway, Ricky Schroder
14. Forever Strong (2008)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 75% (9,886 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 21% (21 reviews)
- Starring: Sean Faris, Penn Badgley, Gary Cole
13. My All-American (2015)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 77% (3,918 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 45% (45 reviews)
- Starring: Aaron Eckhart, Finn Wittrock, Robin Tunney
12. The Power of One (1992)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 87% (9,726 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 18% (18 reviews)
- Starring: Stephen Dorff, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Morgan Freeman
11. Rad (1986)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 90% (7,206 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 12% (12 reviews)
- Starring: Bart Conner, Lori Loughlin, Bill Allen
10. Peaceful Warrior (2006)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 76% (43,049 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 71% (71 reviews)
- Starring: Scott Mechlowicz, Nick Nolte, Amy Smart
9. Poolhall Junkies (2002)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 87% (20,258 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 43% (43 reviews)
- Starring: Mars Callahan, Chazz Palminteri, Michael Rosenbaum
8. Stealing Home (1988)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 78% (5,390 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 10% (10 reviews)
- Starring: Mark Harmon, Jodie Foster, Blair Brown
7. 8 Seconds (1994)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 94% (56,357 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 13% (13 reviews)
- Starring: Luke Perry, Stephen Baldwin, James Rebhorn
6. The Blood of Heroes (1989)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 76% (3,763 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 8% (08 reviews)
- Starring: Rutger Hauer, Joan Chen, Delroy Lindo
5. Facing the Giants (2006)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 85% (88,240 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 25% (25 reviews)
- Starring: Alex Kendrick, Shannen Fields, Jason McLeod
4. Sunset Park (1996)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 83% (4,355 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 8% (08 reviews)
- Starring: Rhea Perlman, Fredro Starr, Carol Kane
3. Grind (2003)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 79% (52,896 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 74% (74 reviews)
- Starring: Adam Brody, Joey Kern, Mike Vogel
- 2. Out Cold (2001)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 84% (47,265 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 49% (49 reviews)
- Starring: Flex Alexander, David Denman, A.J. Cook
1. In God’s Hands (1998)
- Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 80% (2,629 votes)
- Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 6% (06 reviews)
- Starring: Matt George, Matty Liu, Shane Dorian