Blustering New York cops (“You’re in violation of 100 city ordinances!”) provide the comedy as Petit goes back and forth between the buildings.
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In James Marsh’s Oscar-winning 2008 documentary Man on Wire, the real Petit came off like a hyperactive cross between Michel Gondry and Johnny Rotten, and the contagiousness of his intensity was self-explanatory. Fortunately, that doesn’t really matter in his new motion picture showcase, The Walk, because it’s entirely about a man walking on wires. It’s a handsome, lyrical and visually stunning sequence that is worth the wait through the film’s slow start.
The Walk by producer Robert Zemeckis tells the story of French daredevil Philippe Petit, who walked between the two skyscrapers in Manhattan 1,300 feet above the ground in 1974 without a safety net.
“The Walk” is now playing in limited theaters in the US, with a wider release date set for October 9.
Research also shows that 3D movies often make people sick. Zemeckis also reminds us of how he is one of the best storytellers in the world of film.
In an interview with the Cinema Blend, Zemeckis was asked if of any chance he had planned to hire a French actor to portray Philippe Petit, he said that Gordon-Levitt was the only star he wanted to have the lead role.
The right way to see it is in 3-D IMAX, even if that format magnifies-indeed elephantizes-the movie’s mostly ponderous style.
“It’s impossible”, he says, “but I’ll do it”, and he does, with the aid of several accomplices, in spectacular fashion. Here again, the real-life hero has a thick French accent, so Mr. Gordon-Levitt is off the hook on that score, and really all others; he’s a fine actor doing his director’s bidding.
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The film introduces us to Petit, through a shouldn’t-work-but-it-does-anyway framing device of Gordon-Levitt standing on top of the Statue of Liberty with the Towers behind him. And yes, the streak of sentimentality that runs through his films is found here as well, but it’s easy to get beyond that, because the movie is just handsome to behold, and the run-up to the walk itself plays out like a caper. It starts out rather light-hearted, and at times slow, but as the story moves closer to the edge we start to realize that Philippe Petit has a dark and insane side to him. The last act massively elevates this movie into something you have got to see.
