One Man and His Shoes (2020)

Directed by: Yemi Bamiro | 83 minutes | documentary, sports

If a top ten were made of iconic shoes, the Air Jordan sneaker would certainly have a place in it (alongside Dr. Martens, Christian Louboutin pumps and Converse All Stars, for example). First listed in 1980, Nike introduced the Air Jordan basketball shoe in 1985, and the lucky combination of timing, guts and Michael Jordan’s glittering career made the sneaker an incredible success. ‘One Man and His Shoes’ is a documentary by Yemi Bamiro, in which he looks back to those turbulent early years with the help of the usual talking heads, archive material and animated images.

We see footage of a very young Michael Jordan just starting his career with the Chicago Bulls. Marketing employees, journalists and Jordan’s former agent speak (briefly or not) to interpret the history. It’s clear: the multi-billion dollar company took a big gamble by attaching the shoe to the basketball star, but has not regretted it for a second. The Air Jordans are a hit, despite the high retail price. You had to have these shoes. That was compounded when the NBA banned the shoe.

Spike Lee has directed a number of commercials in which he himself reprises the role of Mars Blackmon from ‘She’s Gotta Have It’ and these commercials proved to be a hit. The success of the Air Jordans also stemmed from their scarcity: Nike cleverly limited the run, so that the prices for newly released sneakers on the black market (and later eBay) went up several times. It resulted in a collector’s rage and Bamiro gives the floor to a number of collectors, with Mark Bostic’s collection making the most impression.

There is also a downside and it is to Bamiro’s credit that he pays attention to this, although it does make the film feel a bit off balance. The Air Jordans are so popular that they kill for them. The first time someone died because his killer wanted his sneakers was in 1989. But people still die because of the shoes. The film takes a long look at the 2012 murder of Joshua Woods. His mother, Dazie Williams, seems to be blaming Nike (no pun intended).

The history of the Air Jordans is one of ups and downs and ‘One Man and His Shoes’ flies through it at breakneck speed. A great loss is the namesake of the shoes themselves; we only see Michael Jordan in archive footage. Nike itself also does not speak (according to the disclaimer, the request to participate in this film was not responded to). For seasoned sneaker fans, ‘One Man and His Shoes’ is probably a piece of cake, but the film offers a nice, if not too in-depth, insight into sports marketing and cultural history.