Everybody loves a good underdog story – never is a winner more appreciated and more admired than when they have come from nowhere, having battled through adversity, and ended up coming out on top. It comes as no surprise, therefore, that underdog stories provide such popular plots for movies. Sometimes they are serious and heart-warming, like 1993 College Football based movie Rudy or the true story of US Hockey player Herb Brooks in Miracle; other times they are comedic, like Ben Stiller and Vince Vaugn in Dodgeball; sometimes, like the tale of the Jamaican Bobsleigh team in Cool Runnings, they are both. Here is a list of the top three underdog movies:
1. Cinderella Man
Directed by Ron Howard, Cinderella Man is inspired by the true story of heavyweight boxer James J. Braddock, for whom the film title was a nickname. Forced to give up boxing after breaking his hand, Braddock struggles to make ends meet for his family by working as a manual labourer, until he gets the chance to fill in in a fight against the world number two contender Corn Griffin thanks to a last-minute cancellation. Braddock wins the fight, and then continues to win more until he comes up against Heavyweight Champion of the World Max Baer. Baer jokes of killing Braddock, and “The Cinderella Man” is a 10/1 underdog, but somehow he defeats the odds to win and raise enough money for his family in the process.
2. Rocky
One of the most famous underdog movies, Rocky stars Sylvester Stallone as Rocky Balboa, a local boxer who is given the opportunity to take on World Heavyweight Champion Apollo Creed as a publicity stunt. No one had ever gone the distance or knocked Creed down before, and yet somehow, despite the longest of odds, the unknown Balboa manages both. He loses the fight, but the moral victory is Rocky’s, and the odds on him winning are certainly shortened when he takes on Creed again in the sequel, and this time beats him. Just as Rocky improved his odds with a gutsy first performance, you can improve your odds of winning money online by visiting the right gambling site, like http://www.bgo.com/.
3. The Blind Side
This 2009 film starring Sandra Bullock follows the real-life story of Michael Oher and his journey from an impoverished upbringing and adoption by Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy (Bullock) to offensive linesman for NFL side Baltimore Ravens, for whom he still plays today. Separated from his drug-addict mother at the age of seven, Oher, who scores low in all categories of a career-aptitude test except for a 98 percentile in “protective instincts” is taken in for the family and takes up football. His aptitude for protection makes him a great player, and Oher eventually makes the NFL in what is a true rags to riches story.
Originally published August 21, 2013. Updated November 29, 2022.
