Three years ago, director Steven Soderbergh finally decided to come out of retirement. Despite the mysteriousness surrounding his reasoning, it’s clear that Soderbergh wanted to direct his own way, vowing to shoot his films exclusively on iPhones, if given the chance. With the moderate success of his first iPhone endeavor, Unsane, it is no surprise that Soderbergh continues this vow in his latest film that explores NBA politics, High Flying Bird.
Set in the modern day, High Flying Bird follows sports agent Ray Burke (Andre Holland) trying to keep his business and his clients afloat during an NBA lockout. Ray’s main focus is his client rookie Erik Scott (Melvin Gregg), last year’s number one draft pick who has not been paid due to the NBA lockout. As negotiations between the players association and the owners hit a standstill, Burke tries to find a way to get him and his client paid without breaking their contracts with the NBA.
As someone who follows the NBA like it’s a religion, what has always enticed me about the sport is its swagger. From the player’s subtweets to the focus on player’s fashion to the game itself, the NBA has always seemed like a fast-paced and progressive organization that has its pulse on the cultural zeitgeist. As Burke says in the opening moments of this film, “You think these rich white dudes will let the sexiest sport fall by the wayside.” It’s true, the NBA is sexy, and one of the few sports that has seen an intense growth because of the rise of social media, whether that be slam dunk highlights, rap lyric name drops, or burner accounts. Despite the amount of swagger dripping from the NBA itself, High Flying Bird lacks the same energy as the sport it focuses on.
High Flying Bird is unable to encapsulate the cool factor of Soderbergh’s previous films (i.e. Ocean’s Eleven) or the NBA itself. Even though it invokes a heist-like atmosphere, High Flying Bird often moves at its own pace rather than the urgency the script demands. Soderbergh often lets the characters move around and feel out their environment overtly, often overstaying their welcome in a scene and increasing in intensity when Soderbergh uses his strange close-ups. This paired with the cold blue color palette from the iPhone’s creates and constant panning shots of people walking add to the empty energy of the film. It also doesn’t help that the fictional NBA player Soderbergh creates lack any sense of agency as well.
However, what High Flying Bird lacks in its energy, it makes up for in its intriguing script and self-awareness. It’s clear that writer Tarell McCraney has done his NBA research, so much so that the material can be difficult to digest if one is unfamiliar with the politics in sports organizations. The script is still intriguing and very Sorkin-esque, but the film truly shines in its irony and self-awareness. By focusing on a sport that has become revitalized through the rise of social media, this film truly emphasizes just how one-sided the relationship between the league and its players is. Not only does it highlight the financial manipulation of the NBA against its players, but it also highlights the slave-like foundation the NBA and other sporting organizations are built upon. It is important to highlight that the only white people within this film (there are only two) are insanely rich agents and owners that rely on the services of black people who have to live paycheck to paycheck.
The ultimate irony comes from the fact that Soderbergh is able to highlight these issues on an iPhone, the same device that has catapulted the NBA’s status in our cultural zeitgeist and made NBA stars more of a commodity than ever before. From its use as a plot device to its applications in the NBA today, it is difficult to not see to the limitless possibilities that these NBA players have through an iPhone. Similar to today’s NBA, the narrative of this film emphasizes just how little NBA players need from the sports owners after commodifying their own talents via social media and an iPhone. However, at the same time, the lack of agency these characters have on social media highlights how much fear these owners instill in their players. Players cling onto the rules and regulations of the NBA in order to live out their dreams despite the many financial opportunities they have elsewhere. It shows that despite the NBA’s status as one of the more progressive American sports organizations, it still operates in an archaic slave-like system that takes advantage of black bodies.
Through its script and Soderbergh’s insistence on an iPhone as his camera of choice, High Flying Bird provides a meta-commentary about social media and politics within the sports industry. Despite a strong script, the film’s lack of swagger along with the main character’s lack of urgency make High Flying Bird just short of great.
3.5/5 Stars