Review of The Walk (2015) by Markus M — 16 Nov 2015

While never truly excelling, The Walk is still a damn good movie that with its story of the power of dreams and making the impossible possible has just the right amount of wonder to allow Robert Zemeckis to do what he does best. And granted, when the walk finally happens the shots and the visuals are stunning. The ending is something I would've handled differently though. Having seen the documentary Man On Wire about this same story, I know there are certain unsavory details that when explored would have detracted from the overall message of the film. This isn't a movie about Philippe Petit after all, but about what his dream and his stunt stood for. So while I feel it is perfectly justified to leave certain details out as this is a schmaltzy Zemeckis film and not a realistic character study, in doing so the film would've been better off ending shortly after the walk. Dealing with the aftermath right at the end as it does just feels really awkward now when it ignores certain details regarding certain character relations. Also while 9/11 is never referenced in the film, the final line of dialogue and the final shot of the movie put the focus on the twin towers which for a film with as positive a message as this ends it on an unnecessary downer since as a viewer in 2015 you can't help but bring the events of 9/11 into the story with you. Besides, the towers aren't what this story is about, or at least not what it should be about. This story is not one tied to a specific person or place, and it's not about the World Trade Center towers, nor is it about Philippe Petit. It's not about who or what they were. It's about what they stood for.

8/10.