Air (B+ or 3/4 stars)
'Air' (a behind-the-scenes sports dramedy directed by Ben Affleck) takes place in 1984 and concerns Nike -- a fledgling company lagging farrrrr behind competitors Adidas & Converse in terms of sports apparel, the basketball division, and signing superstar athletes to big endorsement contracts. To that, eccentric Nike CEO Phil Knight (Affleck) has dispatched basketball talent scout/marketing ace Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon) to change all that; but the company is facing hard times; heck, Nike only owned a measly 17% of the share of shoe sales at the time. Despite all that, Sonny takes a huge risk in gambling on one man to change Nike's fortunes: 6'6" University of North Carolina shooting guard, Michael Jordan; a lover of all things Adidas.
Without permission from Nike's VP of marketing, Rob Strasser (Jason Bateman), but with big time encouragement from his advisor Howard White (Chris Tucker, so funny), he heads off to North Carolina in great hopes of convincing the budding NBA rookie's parents, Deloris (Viola Davis) & James (Julius Tennon), to encourage their son to reconsider signing with Nike. Jordan's foul-mouthed agent, David Falk (Chris Messina, a hoot), is livid with frenemy Sonny's actions, as is Phil Knight, but Sonny perseveres; certain that if they can somehow sign Michael - with iron-willed Deloris at the helm of her boy's career - they can mutually use each other to turn around a struggling Nike and, to that, revolutionize sports markets forever with the Air Jordan brand.
Considering the fairly low stakes {we already know how this story turns out, haha}, Affleck's movie kept me involved. He recognizes that opting for fake suspense was not the way to tell this story. Rather, he peels back the curtain to show us the steps that went into securing the deal. 'Air' is a propulsive, easy film to watch ... while not necessarily being as tense or dynamic as I had hoped for. Still, it is unquestionably a quality motion picture that presents the business side of things {a la Moneyball & Jerry Maguire} in a fun, engaging way. We have become used to so many athletes promoting their own brands & profiting from their deals, that it is easy to forget that it alllll started with Michael's Air Jordan shoe; an iconic part of our culture. Another iconic aspect of this film is the 1980s-charged visual & aural onslaught. Affleck gives us the era-appropriate, nostalgic clothing, hairstyles & killer soundtrack of Top 40 hits that kept the film humming along so very well.
Verbose dialogue dominates this film, with 4 main stretches of note: a scene in which Sonny confronts Phil about the value of risk-taking; a phone call when self-absorbed David Falk humorously blasts Sonny with a series of profane insults; a poignant moment in which Rob Strasser speaks of the real reason why he continues to work at Nike; and the climactic heart-to-heart boardroom speech in which Sonny passionately lays out Nike's pitch to Deloris. Ben Affleck's friend & frequent collaborator Matt Damon - who gained weight for this role - is superb as the optimism-fueled scout who is hell bent on winning over the Jordans. Damon exhibits such great rat-a-tat, give-&-take rapport with each character; particularly Affleck, Bateman, Tucker & Messina.
Deloris' steadfastness, maternal dignity, & quiet calm serve her very well in her negotiations with Nike {and Sonny} and, Viola Davis is JUST the expert thespian to get those traits across. 'Air' is really a tribute to Michael's mother & her boundless dedication to her phenomenal son. During the credits, we see a clip of Michael speaking so adoringly of his mother. Speaking of Michael; smart decision to only show glimpses of him. Keeping Jordan's face shrouded keeps the audience focused on the mystique of the marketing campaign, and not on the larger-than-life subject, himself. While this doesn't soar to the heights of other films of its ilk, 'Air' is still a solid, inspiring story about persistence, taking risks & dreaming big in the face of mounting odds.
Without permission from Nike's VP of marketing, Rob Strasser (Jason Bateman), but with big time encouragement from his advisor Howard White (Chris Tucker, so funny), he heads off to North Carolina in great hopes of convincing the budding NBA rookie's parents, Deloris (Viola Davis) & James (Julius Tennon), to encourage their son to reconsider signing with Nike. Jordan's foul-mouthed agent, David Falk (Chris Messina, a hoot), is livid with frenemy Sonny's actions, as is Phil Knight, but Sonny perseveres; certain that if they can somehow sign Michael - with iron-willed Deloris at the helm of her boy's career - they can mutually use each other to turn around a struggling Nike and, to that, revolutionize sports markets forever with the Air Jordan brand.
Considering the fairly low stakes {we already know how this story turns out, haha}, Affleck's movie kept me involved. He recognizes that opting for fake suspense was not the way to tell this story. Rather, he peels back the curtain to show us the steps that went into securing the deal. 'Air' is a propulsive, easy film to watch ... while not necessarily being as tense or dynamic as I had hoped for. Still, it is unquestionably a quality motion picture that presents the business side of things {a la Moneyball & Jerry Maguire} in a fun, engaging way. We have become used to so many athletes promoting their own brands & profiting from their deals, that it is easy to forget that it alllll started with Michael's Air Jordan shoe; an iconic part of our culture. Another iconic aspect of this film is the 1980s-charged visual & aural onslaught. Affleck gives us the era-appropriate, nostalgic clothing, hairstyles & killer soundtrack of Top 40 hits that kept the film humming along so very well.
Verbose dialogue dominates this film, with 4 main stretches of note: a scene in which Sonny confronts Phil about the value of risk-taking; a phone call when self-absorbed David Falk humorously blasts Sonny with a series of profane insults; a poignant moment in which Rob Strasser speaks of the real reason why he continues to work at Nike; and the climactic heart-to-heart boardroom speech in which Sonny passionately lays out Nike's pitch to Deloris. Ben Affleck's friend & frequent collaborator Matt Damon - who gained weight for this role - is superb as the optimism-fueled scout who is hell bent on winning over the Jordans. Damon exhibits such great rat-a-tat, give-&-take rapport with each character; particularly Affleck, Bateman, Tucker & Messina.
Deloris' steadfastness, maternal dignity, & quiet calm serve her very well in her negotiations with Nike {and Sonny} and, Viola Davis is JUST the expert thespian to get those traits across. 'Air' is really a tribute to Michael's mother & her boundless dedication to her phenomenal son. During the credits, we see a clip of Michael speaking so adoringly of his mother. Speaking of Michael; smart decision to only show glimpses of him. Keeping Jordan's face shrouded keeps the audience focused on the mystique of the marketing campaign, and not on the larger-than-life subject, himself. While this doesn't soar to the heights of other films of its ilk, 'Air' is still a solid, inspiring story about persistence, taking risks & dreaming big in the face of mounting odds.