Hoosiers

Hoosiers is a 1986 sports film written by Angelo Pizzo and directed by David Anspaugh in his feature directorial debut. It tells the story of a small-town Indiana high school basketball team that wins the state championship. It is loosely based on the Milan High School team that won the 1954 state championship.

Gene Hackman stars as Norman Dale, a new coach with a spotty past. The film co-stars Barbara Hershey and Dennis Hopper, whose role as the basketball-loving town drunk earned him an Oscar nomination. Jerry Goldsmith was also nominated for an Academy Award for his score. In 2001, Hoosiers was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant"

Why It's a Best Shot

 * 1) Great soundtrack
 * 2) Excellent performances from the actors, especially from Gene Hackman and Barbara Hershey.
 * 3) The film has a considerable charm.
 * 4) The plot is well told.
 * 5) Great love story that actually contributes to the plot.
 * 6) Action photography flattens the excitement of basketball.
 * 7) Very interesting characters.
 * 8) Enormous craftsmanship.
 * 9) The opening sequence is well done.
 * 10) It was shot entirely in the film's setting of Indiana.
 * 11) The following cast members such as Maris Valainis (Jimmy Chitwood), Steve Hollar (Rade Butcher), Brad Boyle (Whit Butcher), Wade Schenck (Ollie McLellan), Kent Poole (Merle Webb), and Wil Dewitt (Reverend Doty) are Indiana natives as is director David Anspaugh while screenwriter Angelo Pizzo was raised there. Also, Hilliard Gates (Radio Announcer) was based there for much of his life.

The Only Bad Quality

 * 1) Like most sports films, it is very predictable.

Trivia

 * Director David Anspaugh and writer Angelo Pizzo were at Indiana University when they first conceived the idea for the film, as it's a story loosely based on the Milan High School basketball team's miraculous state championship victory in 1954.
 * The NCAA penalized Depauw University point guard Steve Hollar for appearing in the film as Hickory player Rade Butcher. Disciplined for accepting a salary on the film in conflict with NCAA collegiate athletic rules, he was suspended for three games and had to give five percent of his paycheck to the University.
 * According to director David Anspaugh, Dennis Hopper would request 30 seconds before any take in which he had to appear inebriated. During that time, he'd spin around to upset his equilibrium before the director called "action" -- a trick he learned from James Dean on Rebel Without a Cause and Giant. Hopper went on to be nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in the film.