AIR is now on Prime Video. 1984 was an amazing year for music, clothes, new tech and apparently footwear. I was a Junior in High School, and have fond memories of that decade. In fact the opening credit sequence of AIR was like a fond memory dump to my brain.
Synopsis: Follows the history of shoe salesman Sonny Vaccaro, and how he led Nike in its pursuit of the greatest athlete in the history of basketball, Michael Jordan.
Sports fan or not everyone knows of the basketball legend Michael Jordan. You think of the sport and Jordan’s name is first on your mind. Though not all of us ever purchased Nike’s Air Jordan, again we all recognize the name. But how these two entities came together is a story that makes Air a fun and intriguing watch.
All companies have to start somewhere and there are always the lean years. For Nike it was their basketball division in the mid 80s. They had a lock on the running market, but Converse and Adidas were kicking their butts with the youngsters, and basketball icons.
The film tells the story of how Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon), a salesman with an inert ability for trends, talked the owner (Ben Affleck) of Nike to put all their assets on a phenom college hoops star named Michael Jordan.
You do not have to be a fashion or sports fan to appreciate the writing and story in this one. Affleck directs an energetic story of business cat and mouse. True stories are always larger than life but this one has an organic feel that makes it engaging. Obviously we all know the outcome, so to be able to hook an audience for 90=minutes with the journey is triumph.
Air has great support
The supporting cast for this film is exceptional. Damon and Affleck lead the group but there are no second rate players here. Standouts are Viola Davis – no surprise – as Michael’s mom Deloris Jordan, and Jason Bateman as Nike Marketing Director Rob Strasser. Chris Tucker, Chris Messina, and Matthew Maher round out the ensemble.
Where did the name Air Jordan come from? What led Micheal to sign with Nike when he loved other brands better? Why the iconic red shoe? All of these pop culture questions are answered – as Hollywood will – in this flick.
Air is one of those films where everything just comes together for the good of the viewer. Will this give Prime Video a solid seat at the awards table? Quite possibly. So much in this film worked. It has humor, 80s flare, intriguing characters, and fast paced look at the world of mass marketing.
And in case you are worried if Nike ever got out of that 80s slump. Spoiler alert; they are doing just fine now.
Air is rated R for language throughout. #primevideo #airmovie #air
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