20 running movies you should definitely watch

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Fiction and documentary films about runners, marathon runners and just people who break through the next ceiling every time.

1. Desert Runners

• Documentary, Drama, Adventure.
• USA, 2013.
• Duration: 99 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 6.

This is a film about the famous Des Sables ultramarathon, which takes place annually in the Sahara Desert in Morocco. For some, this ultramarathon really turns into a nightmare, and not everyone makes it to the finish line. Do you want to understand how difficult it is? Watch a movie, not a few 5-minute YouTube clips.

2. Spirit of the marathon

• Documentary.
• USA, 2007.
• Duration: 104 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 6.

This documentary tells what it is like to run the famous 42 kilometers and 195 meters. He has starred all over the world - in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia - and combines the stories of both amateur marathon runners and world-famous athletes preparing for the Chicago Marathon.

3. Finish straight

• Drama.
• France, 2011.
• Duration: 98 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 3.

This is a film about the former athlete Leila, who was released from prison, and the young athlete Yannick, who lost his sight in an accident. He does not intend to give up and quit training, and Leila becomes his guide on the treadmill. A very touching film, it takes to heart.

4. Prefontein

• Drama, melodrama, biography.
• USA, 1997.
• Duration: 106 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 8.

This is a biography film about the dramatic life of the legendary Steve Prefontein - an athlete who had no equal on the treadmill. On the way to victory, he had to endure defeats that would have stopped many of us, but not him. If you're really curious about what athletes go through on their way to the gold medal, we highly recommend it.

5. Endurance

• Documentary, drama, biography.
• USA, UK, Germany, 1999.
• Duration: 83 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 3.

Another biography film, but this time a documentary, about the life and achievements of the Ethiopian stayer and marathon runner Haile Gebreselassi.

6. Marathon

• Drama, biography.
• South Korea, 2005.
• Duration: 117 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 8.

This film tells the story of a mother who dreams of making a marathon runner out of her son. Her son suffers from autism and, as a result, it is extremely difficult to make contact with the outside world. But Kyung Suk thinks that there is an activity that will suit him very much - running. Together with former running champion Jeong Wook, she decides to turn her son into a great marathon runner.

7. Run to the sky

• Drama, biography.
• DPRK, 2000.
• Duration: 88 minutes.

This biography film tells the story of the athlete Jung Sung Ok, who won gold in the marathon distance at the World Championships in Seville in 1998. As a result of this victory, she became the first athlete in the country's history to receive the title of Hero of the DPRK. But before that … Guess what kind of punishment the athletes who lose the competition receive?

It's a bit unusual to see North Korea in film-producing countries, isn't it? This makes the film even more interesting.;)

8. Chariots of fire

• Drama, biography.
• UK, 1981.
• Duration: 119 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 2.

This true-to-life historical drama follows the fate of two eternally rival athlete-runners who represented Britain at the 1924 Paris Olympics: Cambridge student, Jew Harold Abrahams, and Scottish missionary Eric Liddell.

9. Saint Ralph

• Drama, comedy.
• Canada, 2004.
• Duration: 98 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 6.

The film is about a 14-year-old difficult teenager Ralph, who ends up in an orphanage and, with his intolerable behavior, drives others to white heat. And only one person could see his unique running qualities - Father Hibbert. Ralph's mother falls ill, and only a miracle can save her. Ralph decides that this miracle is his victory at the Boston Marathon, and decides to accomplish it by all means to save his mother.

10. Forrest Gump

• Drama, melodrama, comedy.
• USA, 1994.
• Duration: 142 minutes.
• IMDb: 8, 8.

I think that this cult film needs no introduction, but if you haven't watched it yet, then correct this misunderstanding! A very kind and bright film, which once again proves that if we want to do something, we just need to start doing it, and that's it! Forrest decided to run, having at the same time, to put it mildly, not very athletic.;)

11. No limit

• Drama, biography.
• USA, 1998.
• Duration: 117 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 2.

This is another version of the film about the life of Steve Prefontein, but a little more dynamic. You can watch both and then compare.

12. Chasing a Dream: The Gail Devers story

• Drama, biography.
• USA, 1996.
• Duration: 99 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 4.

A biography film about the difficult life of the famous American runner Gail Divers, who fell on a huge number of problems after the 1986 Seoul Olympics, including severe paralysis and cancer. But Gail not only does not give up - she once again proves how limitless our possibilities are! She returns to the big sport and wins two gold medals at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, and four years later takes gold in Atlanta at a distance of 100 meters.

13. Four minutes

• Drama, biography, history.
• USA, Canada, 2005.
• IMDb: 6, 9.

ESPN film about the life of the outstanding British athlete Roger Bannister, who was the first in the history of running to run a mile in 4 minutes, making a real breakthrough in athletics.

14. Run fat man run

• Melodrama, comedy.
• UK, USA, 2007.
• Duration: 100 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 6.

The main character Dennis, fearing the burden of responsibility, abandons his pregnant bride. His life flows gloomily and hopelessly, he does not strive for anything, and after a few years he becomes an ordinary “couch seal” with a saggy belly and flabby muscles. But at some point, he decides to win the love of his former bride again, and at the same time to wipe his nose to her new friend - a handsome man and an athlete, and for this he is going to … run the London Marathon!

15. "Run Lola Run", Germany, 1998

• Thriller, drama, crime.
• Germany, 1998.
• Duration: 81 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 7.

This is another cult movie, but it's not about running or marathon. It's just about a girl who has to run pretty fast in order to save her unlucky friend Manny, who is also a little courier of a big bandit and lost his bag of money. The amount is a thousand marks, and Lola has only 20 minutes to get them.

16. One square mile

• Drama.
• USA, 2014.
• Duration: 96 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 3.

The main character of the picture is a young guy Drew Jacobs. From childhood, life was not a gift for him: he lost his father early, over time the family became impoverished, and his brother had problems with the police. But a familiar coach sees in Jacobs the makings of a good athlete, which could change Drew's whole future life.

17. Coach

• Drama, biography.
• USA, 2014.
• Duration: 129 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 4.

The movie is based on real events. In the center of the plot is the story of a coach and a teenage team of runners from the Californian town of McFarland. Almost all of the local guys are from Hispanic families who can barely make ends meet. A sports career is their only chance for success, and they will have to fight for it.

18. Unbroken

• Drama, military, biography.
• USA, 2014.
• Duration: 137 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 2.

This biopic tells the story of the life of the American runner Louis Zamperini. He achieved career heights and took part in the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. But the war turned his fate abruptly. The film tells about the tests that the athlete went through in sports and in Japanese captivity.

19. Marathon

• Comedy, drama.
• Netherlands, 2012.
• Duration: 107 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 5.

A comedy film about the sporting adventures of four Dutch men. The main characters work in a car repair shop, which is on the verge of bankruptcy. To make money and pay off debts, the friends decide to run the Rotterdam Marathon. Even their considerable age and complete lack of preparation do not stop them.

20. Runner

• Drama.
• Canada, 1979.
• Duration: 102 minutes.
• IMDb: 5, 8.

American athlete Michael Andropolis is preparing for the Olympic Games. Meanwhile, the athlete's personal life goes downhill. The marriage is about to fall apart, and the children no longer respect their father. Now Michael is faced with a difficult task: not to let the fans down and return the affection of his loved ones.