This Sporting Life

1963
X
2h 14m

IMDb RATING

7.5/10

7.4K

YOUR RATING

Richard Harris as the wild Frank Manchin in this trailer

Play trailer2:24

1 Video

99+ Photos

Drama Sport

Despite success on the field, a rising rugby star senses the emerging emptiness of his life as his inner angst begins to materialize through aggression and brutality, so he attempts to woo h... Read allDespite success on the field, a rising rugby star senses the emerging emptiness of his life as his inner angst begins to materialize through aggression and brutality, so he attempts to woo his landlady in hopes of finding reason to live.Despite success on the field, a rising rugby star senses the emerging emptiness of his life as his inner angst begins to materialize through aggression and brutality, so he attempts to woo his landlady in hopes of finding reason to live.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.5/10

7.4K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 4 wins & 10 nominations total

Videos1

Trailer 2:24

This Sporting Life

Photos183

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Richard Harris became a star in movies as a result of his performance as Frank Machin, although the film itself was not a box-office hit despite generally favorable reviews.

Goofs
The sash window in Mrs Hammond's living room, as seen from the inside (presumably a studio set), has been fitted back-to-front and upside-down. The curved "horns" (moulded wood) are at the top of the lower, inside (sliding) pane, when they should be at the bottom of the upper, outside (fixed) pane.

Quotes
Frank Machin: We don't have stars in this game, Mrs Weaver, that's soccer.
Mrs. Anne Weaver: What *do* you have?
Frank Machin: People like me.

Connections
Featured in Free Cinema (1986)

Soundtracks
Here in My Heart
(uncredited)
Written by Pat Genaro, Lou Levinson and Bill Borrelli
Performed by Richard Harris
[Franks sings the song on stage at the club]

User reviews93

Featured review

9/10

Richard Harris and Rachel Roberts really do give the roles of their lives in this film

This Sporting Life may be a touch overlong, but it is overall a truly brilliant movie and still hits hard after all these years. It has a very realistic story, and the characters are given so much depth and realism it is hard not to empathise. The cinematography is wonderful, the setting is truly evocative, the direction is superb and the screenplay truthful and honest. There are many superb scenes, particularly some truly remarkable scenes of confrontation that are honest to the point it verges on painful to listen. As for the acting, Richard Harris and Rachel Roberts really do give the roles of their live in This Sporting Life, and are both absolutely brilliant as the ruthless professional rugby player and repressed widowed landlady with whom he can only communicate with through violence, and they are finely supported by the likes of Alan Badel and William Hartnell. Overall, brilliant film with a great cast and a hard-hitting sense of realism. 9/10 Bethany Cox