To Reach the Clouds
Wire-walker Philippe Petit crosses between the World Trade Center twin towers in 1974.
The film shows the towers growing, huge steel beams being lifted, the puzzle being put together. As it happens, 9/11 is not even mentioned in the film, which is the right decision, I think. "Man on Wire" is about the vanquishing of the towers by bravery and joy, not by terrorism.
The installation of a wire between the two towers was as complicated as a bank heist. He and his friends scouted the terrain, obtained false ID cards, talked their way into a freight elevator reaching to the top -- above the level of the finished floors. Incredibly, they had to haul nearly a ton of equipment up there. You may have heard how they got the wire across, and how they guy-wired it, but if you don't know, I won't tell you.
Philippe Petit was arrested and eventually found guilty. The charge: Disturbing the peace. Man on Wire is a documentary with heart -- but heart so intense at the time that it turns out impossible to maintain in the long term. (The caper cost Petit at least two of the closest relationships he had.) Is it worth it?
The film shows the towers growing, huge steel beams being lifted, the puzzle being put together. As it happens, 9/11 is not even mentioned in the film, which is the right decision, I think. "Man on Wire" is about the vanquishing of the towers by bravery and joy, not by terrorism.
The installation of a wire between the two towers was as complicated as a bank heist. He and his friends scouted the terrain, obtained false ID cards, talked their way into a freight elevator reaching to the top -- above the level of the finished floors. Incredibly, they had to haul nearly a ton of equipment up there. You may have heard how they got the wire across, and how they guy-wired it, but if you don't know, I won't tell you.
Philippe Petit was arrested and eventually found guilty. The charge: Disturbing the peace. Man on Wire is a documentary with heart -- but heart so intense at the time that it turns out impossible to maintain in the long term. (The caper cost Petit at least two of the closest relationships he had.) Is it worth it?
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