"Sole Man" is a confusing film from ESPN. I don't mean that the film was badly made or unclear--but that the subjects that come up in the film are ones that left me feeling confused about what I think. I don't know if it's a good or bad thing if teens are offered huge money by shoe companies or free shoes. I don't know if it's a good or bad thing that to a much larger extent, the coaches of high school and college teams make HUGE money from these companies as well. I am inclined to hate it all...but what do I know?
This film is about a real character, Sonny Vaccaro. He's a guy who went from organizing a high school all-star game in the Pittsburgh area to becoming THE man who brought basketball shoes from a small business to a multi-billion dollar mega-business. In the late 70s and 80s, he was able to convince Nike to donate shoes to players and pay HUGE stipends to coaches--making this a brand new sort of business. How this all occurred and Vaccaro's eventual falling out with this business makes up most of the documentary.
After Vaccaro's exit from the shoe business, the film makes an unexpected change in direction. Now Sonny re-created himself as a champion of the little guy. While universities and coaches were making huge fortunes, players got nothing during their college days other than scholarships--which could be renewed or not at the school's whims. Additionally, the schools could use the players names and likenesses for free. In other words, they could sell jerseys or license the players to video games--and the players got nothing. Vaccaro's campaign for righting this wrong makes up the final portion of the film--and for me, this was by far the most interesting and the part that I found the most convincing.
Overall, an unusual film about a very unusual man--worth seeing but also a bit confusing when it comes to what it all means.
This film is about a real character, Sonny Vaccaro. He's a guy who went from organizing a high school all-star game in the Pittsburgh area to becoming THE man who brought basketball shoes from a small business to a multi-billion dollar mega-business. In the late 70s and 80s, he was able to convince Nike to donate shoes to players and pay HUGE stipends to coaches--making this a brand new sort of business. How this all occurred and Vaccaro's eventual falling out with this business makes up most of the documentary.
After Vaccaro's exit from the shoe business, the film makes an unexpected change in direction. Now Sonny re-created himself as a champion of the little guy. While universities and coaches were making huge fortunes, players got nothing during their college days other than scholarships--which could be renewed or not at the school's whims. Additionally, the schools could use the players names and likenesses for free. In other words, they could sell jerseys or license the players to video games--and the players got nothing. Vaccaro's campaign for righting this wrong makes up the final portion of the film--and for me, this was by far the most interesting and the part that I found the most convincing.
Overall, an unusual film about a very unusual man--worth seeing but also a bit confusing when it comes to what it all means.