Last year Queensland won a record fifth consecutive State Of Origin series. Below, five films New South Wales should watch before they play game one in Brisbane tonight.
THE FIGHTER [2010]
Key quote: “Are you like me? Was just good enough to fight Sugar Ray? Never had to win, did I? You gotta do more in there. You gotta win a title. For you, for me, for Lowell. This is your time, all right? You take it. I had my time and I blew it. You don’t have to. All right? You fuckin’ get out there, and use all the shit that you’ve been through, all the shit we’ve gone through over the fuckin’ years, and you put it in that ring right now. This is yours. This is fuckin’ yours.”
We could have chosen any inspirational “triumph over adversity” sports flick but went with The Fighter because it features two Rugby League staples; fist fights and drugs.
REMEMBER THE TITANS [2000]
Key Quote: “All right, now, I don’t want them to gain another yard! You blitz all night! If they cross the line of scrimmage, I’m gonna take every last one of you out! You make sure they remember, forever, the night they played the Titans.”
You could perceive the titular quote from 2000 US football flick Remember The Titans as a call for grit, heart and determination but strip away the swelling strings and twinkling coach eyes and it’s actually a call for bruises and body bags. “If you can’t beat them then cause as much physical damage as possible”, basically. It’s a game plan NSW employed in 2009 when Maroons prop Steve Price got knocked out by Brett White, flopped on by Trent Waterhouse and pulled from the ground (while unconscious!) by forward Justin Poore. Just today Queensland coach Mal Meninga expressed concern over claims Blues enforcer Greg Bird would “take out” Maroons skipper Darren Lockyer mafia styles. Do anything to win! They can’t run without legs! Fuck propriety! Studs to the face! All of that.
BRAVEHEART [1995]
Key quote: “Aye, fight and you may die. Run, and you’ll live… at least a while. And dying in your beds, many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days, from this day to that, for one chance, just one chance, to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they’ll never take… OUR FREEDOM!”
Replace “freedom” with “dignity”.
300 [2006]
Key quote: “This. Is. Sparta!”
Some say The Blues don’t care about Origin as much as their brethren up north. Part of that has to do with culture and part of it has to do with a perceived lack of pride in their state of birth. In contrast the Maroons are seen as territorial warriors who use “Queenslander!” as a battle cry (see: possible crazy person Billy Moore). Same deal with Sparta. When a Persian messenger demands that Sparta concede to freaky King Xerxes, King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) responds by kicking the messenger into a bottomless pit that just so happens to be two metres away. We’re not saying NSW should take the field, scream THIS. IS. NEW SOUTH WALES! and front kick Queensland into a metaphorical pit of civic pride but a kick to the chest sounds like a great way to take out Darren Lockyer.
THE MIGHTY DUCKS [1992], D2: THE MIGHT DUCKS [1994], D3: THE MIGHTY DUCKS [1996]
Key quote: All of it.
Do I really need to explain this? Mighty Ducks is one of if not the best young adult/sporting underdog franchise in film history; if you can’t understand that then you’re dead to me. Everyone should watch it to get inspired about life.
