One of the best sports-related movies I’ve seen in years makes a full court press this week in theaters, while over on the indie circuit, there’s a charmer from Ireland, a quirky comedy about a public TV station painter and a supernatural thriller that starts great then falls apart. We even point you to one of the best series yet from Reese Witherspoon’s production company.

Here’s our roundup.

Air

The oft-repeated sports proverb about it not being whether you win or lose but how you play the game gets a healthy and vigorous workout in Ben Affleck’s massively entertaining account about how the then-underdog Nike company in the ‘80s persuaded hot-shot rookie Michael Jordan and his family to sign on for a groundbreaking merchandizing deal that netted the iconic Air Jordan sneakers. What sounds like subject matter better suited for a Netflix documentary transforms into something special, a crowd pleasing feature that will restore your faith in the American Dream as it shows how creative, principled outsiders sunk a three-pointer marketing deal right as that buzzer sounded. Their deal led to a better way to play the game for all players — both on and off the court. But you’ll need to see the movie to find out how that all went down.

Every aspect works in “Air” and everyone in front of and behind the camera gets their A-game on. The cast receives a major assist from the perceptive and funny screenplay from Alex Convery, who kicks out one worth-repeating line after another (“a shoe is just a shoe … until my son steps into it”). As director and co-star, Affleck — who plays the delightfully eccentric Nike CEO Phil Knight — sustains the right, pithy tone throughout. He also makes some very wise decisions, including not having Michael Jordan appear in the film.

Affleck presents his buddy Matt Damon with a juicy lead role, one that is right in his wheelhouse. He plays the determined and astute Sonny Vaccaro, one of Nike’s MVPs — a basketball soothsayer of sorts who hustles and knows all about the up-and-coming basketball stars. During the ‘80s — delightfully rendered and recalled here including the soundtrack — a struggling Nike sought to gain a leg up on its competitors, Adidas and Converse. Vaccaro comes up with what seems like an impossible dream — persuading an uninterested Michael Jordan to go with their brand. It takes a lot of coordinating and negotiating — not just with Jordan’s mother (Viola Davis, in what will be one of the best performances you’ll see in 2023) and to a far lesser extent, his dad (Julius Tennon). Knight doesn’t like the costly endeavor at first, but after some resistance, Nike’s VP of marketing Rob Strasser (Jason Bateman), Vaccaro’s coworker Howard White (Chris Tucker) and even Michael’s wheeling-and-dealing agent David Falk (Chris Messina) get into Sonny’s court.

While material like this might sound like it could be deadly dull for anyone uninterested in sports and shoes, Affleck’s heartwarming story holds appeal for all. It celebrates the old-fashioned notion that ethics and profits can go hand in hand. It’s not only Affleck’s best film yet, “Air” is the first great movie of 2023.

4 stars out of 4; in theaters now.

Paint

It’s a stroke of ingenuity to pick Owen Wilson to portray swooned-over public TV personality and one-trick-pony painter Carl Nargle (based on the real-life painter Bob Ross). With his permed-out hair, soothing vocal delivery and peaced-out presence, Nargle has managed to charm all of Vermont along with devoted female co-workers. But in writer and director Brit McAdams’ quirky comedy, which glides right by you, Carl’s paint-by-numbers style (dubbed “wet on wet”) is ready to be replaced by upstart Ambrosia (Ciara Renée) whose paintings deviate from the same landscape he paints. Her ascent prompts Nargle to suffer from an identity and artistic crisis, one that finds him drawn closer to an old flame and one of the show’s producers (Michaela Watkins). “Paint” is an oddball film about an lovable oddball, and it works just enough thanks to Wilson’s inspired comedic performance.

2½ stars; in theaters Friday.

Tiny Beautiful Things

From all appearances, it seems like a terrible idea to have always at-wit’s-end Clare (Kathryn Hahn) dispensing advice about solving some of life’s sticky predicaments. But even though Clare’s marriage to Danny (Quentin Plair) appears to be zeroing in on its expiration date, and her teen daughter Rae (Tanzyn Crawford) remains bewildered by her actions, Clare’s sage observations about the messiness of life turns out to be just exactly what her Dear Sugar column needs. Showrunner Liz Tigelaar’s eight-episode adaptation of Cheryl Strayed’s best-selling collection, “Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar” doesn’t just stay in the turmoil of the present. It also flashes back to when a younger Clare (played well by Sarah Pidgeon) experienced joys and hardships, including her mother’s untimely death. All of it’s handled well and Hahn is terrific, resulting in “Things” being one of Reese Witherspoon’s best Hello Sunshine productions yet. It’s a series that acknowledges that life presents us with enormous challenges, but also brings us comfort and contentment through the precious things and moments we sometimes fail to appreciate. “Tiny Beautiful Things” reminds us to take the time to honor life’s magic before time passes us by too.

3 stars; drops Friday on Hulu.

Róise & Frank

In this charmer from Ireland, grieving widow Róise (Bríd Ní Neachtain) struggles every day and remains immobilized by the loss two years ago of her husband, who was an avid hurler. When a stray, quite vocal dog takes a shine to her and starts to display some startlingly familiar qualities and traits, Róise starts to believe that the adorable pooch might well be her reincarnated dead husband Frank. Others, including a shifty potential suitor and her doctor son, suspect Róise is losing her grip on reality. That is, until they spend time with the pooch and see how he even knows a thing or two about hurling. While this is a twee film that leads us down a familiar trail, it undeniably warms your heart and puts a smile on your face, and sometimes that’s exactly what we need at the movies.

3 stars; opens Friday in select theaters.

The Unheard

After a satisfying setup, exceptional character development and a superior contrasting use of silence and sound, this well-made thriller/mystery all but collapses in its final act with an uninspired wrap-up that makes you question its inflated running time. That’s a shame since Jeffery A. Brown’s follow-up to his effective indie freak-out “The Beach House” gives us such a strong performance from Lachlan Watson as 20-year-old Chloe, who undergoes an experiment to gain back her hearing that she lost when she was 8 due to meningitis. All, of course, does not go according to plan, as Chloe starts to hear and see fragments from her past that could be tied to a legacy of missing people. “The Unheard” achieves so much in its first hour and then torches it near the end.

2 stars; available now on Shudder.

El Houb — The Love

First-time director Shariff Nasr plumbs the senseless hatred aimed at a gay Muslim man whose family can’t fathom or accept his sexuality. Funny and devastating in equal measures, Nasr’s perceptive feature finds successful Moroccan-Dutch businessman Karim (an electrifying Fahd Larhzaoui) stowing himself away in his parents’ home once his father comes to his apartment and is greeted by an attractive, semi-clothed lover (Emmanuel Ohene Boafo). Nasr’s “El Houb — The Love ” takes no prisoners as it exposes the festering hate swirling inside a “picture-perfect” family.

3 stars; available to rent Friday.

Contact Randy Myers at soitsrandy@gmail.com.