The Air Up There (1994)
Jimmy Dolan is a college basketball coach who wants a big promotion. To get it, he needs to make a dramatic find. He ends up deep in Africa, hoping to recruit Saleh, a huge basketball prodigy Jimmy glimpsed in a home movie. But Saleh is the chief's son and has responsibilities at home, since the tribe's land is threatened by a mining company with its own hotshot basketball team.
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That was an excellent one.
So much average
Simply Perfect
If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.
As someone who's never really been into sports, "The Air Up There" hardly seems like the sort of movie that I would like, but I did. When basketball talent scout Jimmy Dolan (Kevin Bacon) goes to Kenya to recruit a new player, he ends up finding Saleh, a chief's son whose skills exceed what anyone could have imagined. But before he moves to the states, there are some things that both sides are going to have to deal with.This movie is interesting mainly for two reasons: it's good to see a sports movie that's not all about machismo, and a movie that looks at Kenyan culture (not one that we usually get to see). The movie isn't really any kind of masterpiece, but it never pretends to be one. There are some scenes that look like they were thrown in for comic relief (namely the goat milk). Pretty interesting.
I loved this movie and watch it over and over. A real classic with reluctant heroes, bad guys, comic relief and very pertinent underlying morals. No sex, vulgarity or graphic violence. Just a great plot, good acting, great directing and gorgeous scenery. It contains all the elements I love in a movie that run you through the gamut of laughter, anger, sadness and joy. Paul Michael Glaser did a tremendous job in capturing the essence of Kenya and it's people. We visited Kenya last year and now I even enjoy the movie more, if that's possible. I don't think it's meant to be a side splitting comedy. Kevin Bacon's performance was great. You really believed he was an arrogant basketball coach with a superior attitude. It's wonderful what going back to the cradle of civilization will do towards humbling even the most haughty. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who wants a taste of a good quality flick.
I just watched this movie again, and I still love it from when I was a kid. (I know everyone loves some stinkers when they're kids, but bear with me.) This movie was as entertaining now as it was back then. I know the plot can be predicted almost to the detail, but if that doesn't immediately and absolutely put you off it, it's a real treat. The acting and script are sincere, but even more so, the whole movie just has an innocent sincerity to it that's actually a rare find (even in a kids' movie). If this movie were a romance, it wouldn't hold up at all with this kind of sentimentality, but in a fun movie that's (technically) a sports drama, it really lends something to the whole affair that can put you in a good mood every time you watch it. I'm sure part of this is Maina's performance, which is so sweet you can't help but like it -- this is coming from a usually-cynical moviegoer who dislikes "sappy" movies.All in all, it's a charmer.
When college basketball coach Jimmy Dolan loses the hottest new recruit by beating him in a game of one on one and damaging his pride he loses his job and looks for a way to get back. He sees a brilliant African player on a home movie and travels to Kenya to recruit him. However Saleh is the Chief's son and has his own problems as a mining company is trying to get control of the tribe's land.Bacon is not really a lead actor but someone who can give a good performance in co-lead or support. Here he has a film to carry on his own and struggles with it. Mainly it's due to the formulaic nature of the plot lets be honest, even from the plot outline above I bet you could guess how's it going to end. However that doesn't mean it's not enjoyable just not very good. It has plenty of nice laughs and the basketball action is fun and will directed if not realistic.Despite the formula the cast mainly do quite well, but really it never manages to get above the sort of formulaic sports comedy that we see so often. However it is entertaining and I did enjoy just switching off my brain and letting it go in one ear and out the other.Instantly forgettable and very by the numbers but some good laughs, good locations and good basketball action make it an entertaining enough film to just veg out in front of. Not great but passable.