Movies are awfully long these days. The long-awaited first Avatar sequel was even longer than the quite long original. Most comic book movies average about two-and-a-half hours. Even the fourth John Wick — whose first entry was a lean 100 minutes, all about a guy killing everyone because some shnook killed his puppy — clocked in at nearly three hours. So what about Air, the movie about the creation of a shoe? Is it another movie that could use an intermission?
The answer is nope. It “only” runs 112 minutes. That’s almost a short film in this era of butt-numb-a-thons. Granted, even that may seem long if you don’t think a movie about a shoe sounds all that interesting. But for most it may be a perfect length — enough to get into the nitty gritty of a surprisingly fascinating (and entertaining!) subject, not so long that you’ll have to consider what you drink or eat beforehand lest you risk missing something good when you nip off to the restroom.
Air is also a Mulligan for director-star Ben Affleck and his co-star Matt Damon. Back in 2021, the Good Will Hunting boys reunited for The Last Duel, which took them back to Medieval France. (That one ran a whopping 153 minutes, but it also had to tell the same story from three very different perspectives, the conclude with the titular duel.) This one too runs the chance of being unfairly ignored by multiplex viewers, who have been primed over the last decade-plus to only turn out in droves for blockbusters. But maybe the draw of Michael Jordan — who’s never even depicted in it on-screen — combined with some stunning ’80s looks can get people out.
In Air, Affleck, who hasn’t directed a movie since the poorly received gangster pic Live by Night, plays Sonny Vaccaro, the cocky sports marketing exec brought in by Nike honcho Phil Knight (Damon) to save a floundering Nike. Affleck, who didn’t write it, demanded Viola Davis play Jordan’s mom.
Air is now in theaters. And when you throw in trailers, you should be out of the theater roughly 130 minutes after you arrive.
