Review of Man on Wire (2008) by Manny C — 12 Jan 2011

Is it possible for a documentary to move you to tears, but not be talking about the plight of people in other countries? Is it possible for a documentary to pin you to the edge of your seat from palm-sweating suspense? Did you even know you had these questions? Director James Marsh answers these questions beautifully in one of the decade's greatest documentaries, Man On Wire.

It's simple: back in 1974, 24-year-old French high-wire artist Philippe Petit pulled off one of the greatest guerilla-art stunts in American history when he set walked a wire he and his accomplices set up illegally from one incomplete World Trade Center Tower to the next. At 1,350 feet from the streets, Petit did everything short of just jumping for nearly an hour.

Shortly afterwards he was arrested, sent to a shrink and the celebrated.

September 11, 2001 is never mentioned in Marsh's stunning film, and the choice not to make reference to it seems in itself a daring stunt. But Marsh and Petit, in a fresh interview, are looking to lift spirits more subtly. Marsh's breathtaking film chooses to focus on what happened then, when those towers were solid.

It's not just one interview after another. No, indeed, each interview, with Petit and his crew are full of joy and, best of all discoveries when recalling the events that unfolded. Marsh balances everything else with an expert pace and wit, allowing Petit himself to do most of the narrating. He presents the stunt itself like a heist movie to rival anything ever cooked up by Michael Mann or Steven Soderbergh.

Together, with Ralph Vaughan Williams' music, including the gorgeous 'The Lark Ascending', Marsh creates breathtaking cinema, and best of all, cinema that truly offered a sense of hope, a sense that anything is possible. Boy could we use more movies like that now.