Air - Ben Affleck - 2023

★★★-Air retells the story of Michael Jordan's historic signing with Nike in 1984 before ever playing a second of professional basketball. The idea for the film came from screenwriter Alex Convery, who noticed that the story was glossed over in the documentary series The Last Dance. 

Matt Damon stars as talent scout Sonny Vaccaro who had the biggest hand in the signing. Others at the table during the historic pitch include Phil Knight, co-founder of Nike played by Ben Affleck, marketer Rob Strasser (Jason Bateman), player rep Howard White (Chris Tucker), shoe designer Peter Moore (Matthew Maher), Jordan’s agent David Falk (Chris Messina), and Jordan's parents (played by the Viola Davis and her husband Julius Tennon). 

The movie apparently had Jordan's blessing as Affleck met with him before filming on what should be included in the movie (he specifically said that Davis had to play his mother). Nike wasn't consulted, supposedly, but that doesn't matter because they come off looking fucking great. As does Vaccaro, who is considered something of a dubious character (for more on him, check out the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary, Sole Man, which focuses on his life). 

Reviews were mostly positive with the Rotten Tomatoes score at a Certified Fresh 92%. Though there were some people that didn't like it. NPR's Aisha Harris criticized the film's “craven exercise in capitalist exaltation” and lack of character development. Similarly, Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian called it a “shallow, parochial and obtuse” corporate promo.

I liked it though it feels weird rooting for Nike. Claims that it is pretty much a commercial for Jordan's sneakers and Nike are pretty accurate, but it tells a hell of a story with a lot of talented actors. Certainly not the worst movie I've seen about Michael Jordan.

Gone Girl - David Fincher - 2014

★★★★- I just watched this over the weekend. I haven’t stopped thinking about it. What a fucking nuts movie. Towards the bottom of my flicks for Fincher, but still stellar. Love his films.

It’s almost humorous how elaborate the plot gets. Lotta Fincher themes getting explored here and done really well. Narcissistic sociopathy. Check. Scathing media takedown. Check. Trouble relationships with money and power. Check. Extreme misogyny. Triple check there. Amanda Dobbins, whom I love on The Ringer, asks if the film is “a misogynistic summary of all the ways that a woman can falsely accuse a man.“ Also, based on a Gillian Flynn novel. 

The Amazing Amy shit is a really great way to fuck somebody up. She has no real friends, a total sociopath, the only people in her life are her parents and people she’s manipulating (her husband, the dumb pregnant girl, so forth), but she is pretty capable and plays a great victim. Her husband, Ben Affleck’s character Nick, is really gonna have a shitty life. And in the end, they’re back where they started, in a loveless marriage but now there are no illusions, I guess. Here you are raising a child with a woman that was going to kill herself to frame you. That kid is going to be fucked, one of her playthings. 

Loved Tyler Perry. Wasn't a fan Neil Patrick Harris. Structure of the movie is pretty good. One thing I couldn’t really get behind is how the detective and everyone when the gone girl returns after having obviously murdered someone is just like, “meh, it was just a goof.” White people are indeed crazy.