Air welcomes the viewer in with a 80s montage, showing the setting and details of 1984. That’s when we find our protagonist, Sonny Vaccaro (played by Matt Damon from the Departed and the Martian), a middle-aged man willing to risk it all to win it all. The film shows him living in a world of excess, and he desires to own as much of that excess as possible.
The film from Amazon Studios depicts Vaccaro’s attempts to convince Michael Jordan (then a rookie with the Chicago Bulls) to sign a deal with them and create an exclusive shoe line, the Air Jordan. Damon plays Vaccaro like a gambling addict, one who wants to win it all. He works in the basketball division of Nike, and he comes to believe that despite their limited budget and lack of success in the basketball shoe world, they can get a rookie who is going to become a star.
Playing at times like a more mainstream and less anxiety-inducing version of Uncut Gems, the film shows in great detail just how hard it is to actually sign a young basketball star to a deal like this. The film almost never shows Jordan himself, instead all the people around him and the industry that rushes to sign him. One of the best scenes in the film is the first between Damon’s character and Jordan’s mother (played by Viola Davis from the Woman King and the Suicide Squad). Their interaction is business stripped down to its core essentials, two people talking about how they can make money for each other. Damon sees Davis as a woman who only wants the best for her son, and she sees him as a man who only knows the best for her son, but needs the best for himself too.
It’s not a particularly active film, it doesn’t spend a lot of time on the courts. The majority of the film unfolds in offices, with characters talking about the best way to enact their plans. What makes the film work is how exciting and heightened it can make these conversations. A large part of that goes comes from the strength of Alex Convery’s script and the direction by Damon’s buddy Ben Affleck (from Good Will Hunting and Justice League). He also appears as Nike CEO Phil Knight. Affleck’s direction is solid all throughout, keeping the film moving along at a brisk pace. While Affleck does play a large role, his character isn’t the film’s focus. Damon, and his character’s beliefs regarding Michael Jordan are. That said, Affleck’s style is on point.
But Damon’s performance is bolstered by many supporting performances. He plays well with Jason Bateman (from Arrested Development and Ozark), who plays his #2 man and marketing guru. Bateman’s performance is one of the strongest in the film, a man who sees the impossibility of Damon’s idea and is slowly convinced that it could work. But with supporting players like Chris Messina (from Birds of Prey), Chris Tucker (from Rush Hour), and Matthew Maher (from Our Flag Means Death) each turning in excellent performances, the film becomes greater than the sum of its parts.
What is most excellent about this film is how it’s able to take a fairly complicated deal that many average people might not fully understand, and break it down in an interesting manner. Going into the film everyone knows that Jordan will sign with Nike and create one of the most popular shoes of all time. But the fact that the film makes the journey so exciting is a testament to all involved with this production.
Air is an exciting film about a topic many know a little about, but probably not a lot. With a strong cast led by Matt Damon, great direction by his friend Ben Affleck, and a stellar script by Alex Convery this is an entertaining film and a good time. I give this film a 4/5, you can watch it in cinemas now.
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