Endlessly quoted and highlighted, Knute Rockne, All American is one of the screen's most famous sports biographies. At the center of the film is Pat O'Brien's stirring performance as Rockne. He's fun to watch, particularly in his famous "Win one for the Gipper" speech. The Gipper himself is nicely played by Ronald Reagan, who would later become known by that nickname as well. The film is a leading example of the sports-mythology genre, the polar opposite of such realistic athlete biopics as Martin Scorsese's searing Raging Bull (1980). Director Lloyd Bacon was one of Warner Bros.'s most reliable studio hands, and he insures that Knute Rockne is successful at what it sets out to accomplish: telling an inspiring story with just enough real-life accuracy to make it credible.