Ben Affleck’s “Air” is the first surprising film of 2023, possibly a top 10 film of the year.
Air is a biographical sports comedy/drama about the origin of Nike’s Air Jordan. Nike’s sales rep Sonny
Vaccaro (Matt Damon) pursues basketball rookie Michael Jordan, creating a partnership that
revolutionizes the world of sports and contemporary culture.
The film is surprisingly well made based on a story where everyone will know the ending, but not know
what would take to get what is now considered the greatest player ever in the NBA to sign with a shoe
company that was only known for producing running shoes. The cast is very well at bringing the Nike
team to life that was behind the story. Jason Bateman as Rob Strasser, the chairman is a single
father who is just bribing his daughter to love him with free shoes. Chris Tucker is Howard White, a Nike
executive that uses his charm to help attract Jordan. Ben Affleck portrays Phil Knight, the co-founder
and chairman that was behind the creation of Nike Inc in 1971 and Viola Davis playing Deloris Jordan,
the mother and predominant decision maker for Michael. All the actors together make this journey to
the unknown outcome at that time funny, serious, and tense at times.
The film’s soundtrack helps guide the moviegoer on this story of what would become the biggest shoe
line to date. I love how Affleck doesn’t focus the film on Michael Jordan himself but more on
the individuals that help guide Jordan to make the biggest and best decision of his life.
Air is the first must-see award contender of 2023. Affleck has another top-notch film under his belt
and worthy of seeing in the theaters.