James Marsh's Oscar-winning documentary--based upon French acrobatic daredevil Philippe Petit's memoir "To Reach The Clouds"--concerning that mesmerizing August morning in New York City, 1974 when Petit "danced" across the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center on a cable, 1350 feet in the air, with the world looking on (and up!). The film cheats a bit on the documentary format by re-enacting several key moments of Petit's preparation, yet the visualization is helpful (and rather necessary), while Petit himself, commenting on the goings-on with childlike abandon, is an amazing character worthy of the best fiction. I would have preferred less of Petit's disparate group of assistants and more on his thoughts of the Towers themselves (and New York City in the aftermath of 9/11, which is not mentioned); however, this is still quite an incredible journey...both intense and unexpectedly moving. Michael Nyman's piano theme is beautiful, as is Igor Martinovic's cinematography in the charmingly simple final sequence. *** from ****
Review of Man on Wire
