Position Portrayed:
Loose Forward for a local Rugby team in Yorkshire
Why you should vote::
We don’t have a higher profile Rugby nominee.
Why you should not vote::
As good as Machin was as a Rugby player, the film was more about his issues with anger as opposed to athleticism.
We never cared who Richard Harris played, as we loved him in almost everything he did (except for when he sang MacArthur Park). In 1963, he was cast as Frank Machin, a coal miner consumed with anger, which was perfectly transferred to the rugby field where he became a local star. However, this was not a case where channeled rage into sports was therapeutic, as Machin showcased far deeper issues, and Rugby was more of a backdrop to what was really going on inside.
Ironically, though this featured Rugby, which is big in the U.K., and not in the United States, did better and was more critically received on the west side of the pond.
