Air is a biographical sports drama film directed by Ben Affleck and written by Alex Convery. Being a film directed by Affleck, it could not pass the opportunity to be starred by none other than Matt Damon. Air is a film based on actual events that explain the circumstances of how Nike Inc. tries to make a business deal for a line of shoes with rookie basketball player Michael Jordan.
For those of you who have a taste for “Air Jordans”, the most famous athletic shoe ever created, or are simply a fan of marketing, business or entrepreneurship, this movie is for you.
This film takes place in 1984 in Oregon, and they do an amazing job of setting you in the 80’s, in my opinion, I feel that no movie or series has emulated the 80s the way Air did. The film starts with quick shots of 80’s movies, music videos, commercials, and TV series. Once the movie starts, you can feel like you are in that era because of the characters’ outfits, the main set, which is the Nike offices, and the fantastic soundtrack from “My Adidas” by Run-D.M.C. to “Rock the Casbah” by The Clash. Not to mention the iconic fiusha pink sports suit worn by Ben Affleck in one of his shots.
The film shows Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon) as a basketball guru. Despite the budget he has been allotted for the next sneaker line deal with one of the rookies in basketball, he thinks about risking everything, his job and the Nike company itself, because of this intense feeling he has for doing whatever it takes to get Michael Jordan as the next face of the Nike line. At that time, Nike was not precisely the shoe of choice for athletes, and from the beginning, it is mentioned that Jordan has every intention to close some deal with Adidas as his first choice and Converse as his second.
As I mentioned before, if you are a business enthusiast, this movie is for you as we follow the entire Nike team, from PR, Marketing, and Research and Development, in creating the most iconic sports shoe known to this day. This movie leaves you with a strong feeling for entrepreneurship and, above all, for listening and trusting your instinct. Because what everyone in this movie does is trust Sonny’s gut feeling for this business deal.
No doubt this movie has it all, from the awkward jokes played by Ben Affleck as Phil Knight, the CEO of Nike Inc; to the references and curious facts about the different shoe brands; for example, did you know that the name Adidas is an abbreviation of the founder Adolf Dassler (“Adi-Das”)? And finally, the fantastic performances of Viola Davis, Jason Bateman, Chris Tucker, Matthew Maher, Chris Messina, and Marlon Wayans, among others.
To close this review, the film Air does not miss the opportunity to project inspirational phrases throughout the film so that viewers share the same feelings and emotions that our main character Sonny Vaccaro is going through. As well as witnessing the best speech you will likely hear from Matt Damon.
All in all, this movie is a complete gem that you can’t miss. And remember:
“A shoe is just a shoe until someone steps on it.”
