It’s week four of isolation/lockdown/quarantine/whatever you want to call it(!) and we’re slowly making our way through every single bit of film and television Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime, BBC iPlayer, All 4, ITV Hub, [insert streaming platform of your choice here] has to offer.
We thought we’d put together a little guide to lacrosse films we think you should take a look at over the next few weeks and, hey, if it stops you from flicking through all the films on Netflix before deciding there’s nothing you want to watch on there anyway then we think that’s a small victory, don’t you?
So, here we go with part one…
1. CROOKED ARROWS (2012)
This 2012 film features Superman Returns star, Brandon Routh, as mixed-blood Native American, Joe Logan, who wants to expand his casino onto the land of his ancestors. But first, he must prove himself to his father, the traditionalist Tribal Chairman.
Before he will grant him his request, his father, played by Twilight’s Gil Birmingham, asks him to coach a struggling high school lacrosse team, which competes against better equipped and better trained teams in the Prep School League.
Joe reluctantly accepts and has to delve into the traditional cultural heritage of the sport to gain the respect of his players and get them winning again.
A classic underdog story with added bits of the history of lacrosse, Crooked Arrows is everything you need during a lazy afternoon on the sofa.
Crooked Arrows is currently available to watch on YouTube HERE.
2. The Spirit Game: Pride of a Nation (2017)
This feature-length documentary also focuses on the history of lacrosse and its place in the Iroquis/Haudenosaunee culture.
It follows the Iroquois Nationals Men’s squad as it prepares to compete in the 2015 World Box Lacrosse Championships.
These championships were significant as they were the first to be played on a Native American reservation in Onondaga, New York State, the capital of the Iroquois Confederacy.
This is definitely a must-see for lacrosse lovers all around the world as it reminds us of the history of the sport as well as what it means to those who play the game in this part of the world.
The Spirit Game: Pride of a Nation is currently available to rent or buy from Amazon Video.
3. A Warrior’s Heart (2011)
A light-hearted romantic sports drama, A Warrior’s Heart is perfect for those lazy Sunday’s in front of the telly!
The film sees star lacrosse player Conor Sullivan, played by Kellan Lutz, move to a new town where he doesn’t know anybody until he meets Brooklyn, played by Twilight’s (is there a theme with these lacrosse films?) Ashley Greene.
After Conor’s father dies during combat in Iraq, he begins to lose all sense of himself and his life looks like it’s going off track when he gets kicked off the lacrosse team after a violent on-field incident.
To regain his obvious passion for the sport, he embarks on an arduous lacrosse training camp in the wilderness led by his dead father's old combat buddy, Sgt. Major Duke Wayne (Adam Beach), who opens Conor's eyes to the true meaning of maturity, sportsmanship and manhood.
A Warrior’s Heart is currently available to watch on YouTube HERE.
4. City Lax: An Urban Lacrosse Story (2010)
An insight into what a sport that has been historically played by those who are most affluent in society can do for those who are least affluent, City Lax: An Urban Lacrosse Story is a documentary that tells the story of a group of 12-year-olds from Denver’s inner city who have found a hint of salvation from their violent neighbourhood through the most unlikely of sports.
From the moment the kids discover what a lacrosse stick is, to the heart stopping finale at the State Championships, City Lax: An Urban Lacrosse Story takes us on an unforgettable journey.
With the wealthy, white sport of lacrosse as the backdrop, we watch as these kids confront the vicious inequalities that plague urban youth today.
Yet their undeniable spirit carries them, and their story, to places unexpected and unbelievable.
A really important film that proves that lacrosse is a global sport that can be, like football and rugby before them, played by everyone in society.
City Lax: An Urban Lacrosse Story isn’t currently available to watch online but it’s definitely a must see!
5. Shaolin Girl (2008)
A Japanese sports action comedy, Shaolin Girl, focuses on young Rin Sakurazawa, who, after having trained at the Shaolin Temple for 3000 days, returns to Japan to find her former dojo abandoned, and her former Shaolin master a cook at a local restaurant.
While struggling to restore her dojo to its former glory and spread a genuine Shaolin philosophy, Rin attends university where she becomes the star member of the lacrosse team.
Rin's exceptional physical abilities bring a string of victories to the team and her teammates, in turn, come to her aid by helping her re-establish the dojo.
Just as fortune seems to be beginning to smile upon her, however, a dark incident from a past Rin knew nothing about rears its ugly head and throws her into a showdown with tremendous evil.
This film is so dramatic that it borders on being silly but who doesn’t want to see flaming lacrosse balls flying through the air?
Shaolin Girl is currently available to watch on YouTube HERE.
Honourable Mention - Wild Child (2008)
This the most well-known film in our list but we didn’t feel we could include it as a ‘proper’ lacrosse film as it only has a few scenes that focus on the sport. Plus, you’ve probably seen it anyway!
In Wild Child, we see rebellious Malibu princess Poppy Moore, played by Emma Roberts, shipped off to the same English boarding school her now dead mother went to.
Unwilling to accept the strict regime, she decides to misbehave and take the blame for everyone until she's dismissed.
The school's only appealing feature for her is the head teacher’s dashing son Freddie, played by Alex Pettyfer. When the dream prince transfers his favor from ambitious, uptight Harriet to unruly Poppy, that changes everything.
A film which saw England Lacrosse’s very own Head of Organisational Development, Paul Coups, take charge of teaching the actors to play lacrosse, Wild Child is a funny, silly, and charming film that, as an added bonus, also contains some lacrosse!
Wild Child is currently available to watch on YouTube HERE.
And there you have it: part one of our look at lacrosse films you should watch to stop you from getting bored during this isolation period.
But don’t forget that watching films about lacrosse is still no replacement for doing some real-life lacrosse practice in you garden!
Happy laxxing!