Air
2023
***½
Director: Ben Affleck
Cast: Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman, Marlon Wayans, Chris Messina, Chris Tucker, Viola Davis, Jay Mohr, Julius Tennon, Dan Bucatinsky, Gustaf Skarsgård, Jessica Green
In 1984, Nike's basketball shoe division is a distant third behind Converse and Adidas. To turn the tide, the company's talent scout bets the entire annual budget to try and sign a promising rookie named Michael Jordan. This dramatised true story about the creation of the Air Jordan shoe line was released almost simultaneously with two other buyopics, BlackBerry and Tetris. Unlike those two, this one deals with a product that is still relevant, so in essence this is a two-hour Nike promotion. This is certainly the most enjoyable film about a shoe I have ever seen, but its story doesn't offer much suspense unless you've been locked in a basement for the last 40 years. The performances are great, though.
