The latest film from Ben Affleck, AIR, has landed on Amazon Prime Video. The biopic has already scored a massive 98% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. 25 years after Good Will Hunting, the Ben Affleck-Matt Damon duo is back on the big screen, and it seems they haven’t lost their touch.
The New Film
Ben Affleck himself took the responsibility of directing the film, along with starring in it with his best buddy Matt Damon. The film also stars Jason Bateman, Chris Tucker, Viola Davis, Chris Messina, and Marlon Wayans, among others. The acclaimed film follows the real events of the 1980s about the origin of ‘Air Jordan,’ the revolutionary basketball shoe line from the famed sportswear house Nike. The story centers on the company looking to reinvigorate its brand image by putting all its faith into Michael Jordan, a rookie basketball player, being the face of the brand. Matt Damon plays the role of Nike executive Sonny Vaccaro, while Ben Affleck plays Phil Knight, the billionaire business magnate and co-founder chairman of Nike.
The Critical Reviews
AIR has already garnered many positive reviews from film critics. Praising the movie’s “perfect ’80s” look and feel, ABC Radio film critic Matt Neil gave the film four out of five stars. He also admired Ben Affleck for his direction by stating that he successfully made an enjoyable light entertainment for the bigger world out of something niche and esoteric. Critic Robert Ebert called the film “old-fashioned but also alive and crowd-pleasing” by particularly noting the “sharp and snappy script” perfectly wrapped up in a marvelous “entertaining package.” The New York Times film critic Manohla Dargis also praised the directing capability of Ben Affleck by saying that he managed to properly champion the talents of the cast, especially Matt Damon and Viola Davis, who plays the role of Deloris Jordan, the mother of the soon-to-be-legendary basketball player Michael Jordan.