The year is 1984. Eddie Murphy just starred in “Beverly Hills Cop,” Los Angeles is hosting the Summer Olympic games, gas prices are cheaper than ever, and Prince Harry was just born. That very same year, a scrawny shooting guard from North Carolina named Michael Jordan was drafted onto the Chicago Bulls. 

“Air” is an homage to the ’80s. It sees Nike’s failing basketball shoe division rescued by Jordan’s iconic shoe brand. Jordan’s success with the brand exemplified Nike’s overall goal of constantly rooting for the unexpected underdogs. At Nike, it was never about winning. Rather, what really mattered was effort.

“Air” shows the noble act of persistence, and is a story seldom told to those in Generation Z.  

Set in the offices within Nike’s headquarters, the film lacks visual aesthetics but makes up for it with both a witty screenplay and strong character dynamics. Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon) is an out-of-shape, middle-aged man who is obsessed with basketball, serving as a sports marketing executive working with Nike. His pitch to sign Jordan is bold and virtually impossible, as Nike does not have the money nor the commercial appeal for the rising star. Vaccaro’s colleagues, including Nike co-founder and CEO, Phil Knight (Ben Affleck), are well aware of this fact. 

Knight is both a Buddhist and a capitalist, drives a grape-colored Mustang, arrives to work in fuchsia tracksuits and metallic sunglasses, and teaches absurd breathing techniques to his team. With his bare feet often stretched across his desk, Affleck steals every scene with his eclectic performance. He’s an unconventional leader, but nonetheless plays a crucial role in allowing Vaccaro to pursue Jordan as a brand ambassador.

There is an overwhelming sense of trust between these two, as well as with everyone in Nike’s basketball division. Played by Chris Tucker, executive Howard White brings a quick and hilarious Virginian vernacular to the film, and Rob Strasser (Jason Bateman), the vice president of marketing, offers his somehow optimistic cynicism to each scene he is in. Every character maintains the perfect balance of professionalism and playfulness.

Perhaps the most compelling performance is from Viola Davis who plays Deloris Jordan, Michael’s mother. Her unwavering support of her son demonstrates that she understands both her family’s worth and her own. Davis’ stoic exterior hides the incredible inner workings of a mother figure’s mind. There isn’t a moment in the film in which the audience can predict her intentions with Nike, due to her apprehension of Jordan working with the brand. Despite Deloris’ uneasiness, her openness with Vaccaro is what ultimately convinces Michael to meet with the Nike team. Vaccaro contends that “a shoe is just a shoe until someone steps into it,” and Deloris corrects him: “A shoe is just a shoe until my son steps into it.” Jordan’s absence in the film is compensated for by the woman who shaped him. Although it is Vaccaro who is focused on the most, the film is truly Deloris’ story. She is the protagonist. 

Another defining aspect of the film is the slew of passionate phone calls that encapsulate the tensions between Nike businessmen who may lose their jobs and Jordan’s representatives. David Falk (Chris Messina), Michael’s agent, continuously jams the telephone against its base in anguish while Vaccaro enthusiastically hangs up on his concerned boss while driving to the Jordan residence. Similarly, Deloris pulls her landline ever so slightly away from her ear to escape Vacarro’s blabbering. The phone becomes an integral character in “Air,” elevating beyond its function as a prop. The improvised banter and intense frustrations throughout each negotiation create a hatred between the two sides that livens up the dialogue-driven script. 

Some of the greatest lines in the film come from Nike’s meetings with the Jordan family. Michael sits at the head of the table and anxiously waits to leave while the Nike executives continue to flatter him. Vaccaro halts the presentation and speaks to Michael directly: “Everyone at this table will be forgotten as soon as our time is up, but not you. You are eternal. Your story is going to make us want to fly.” Vaccaro is a guy who loved his job, loved the game and saw something special in Michael that no other sports executive did. His raw devotion culminates in this emotional speech that will be quoted for years to come.  

While “Air” is not exclusively a sports film, it certainly has a satisfaction that feels like a game-winning buzzer-beater.

Contact Olivia Condell at [email protected].