Marshie
Contributor
Joined: 01 Nov 2007
Posts: 16
|
 Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 5:59 pm Post subject: Man on Wire |
 |
|
Despite reels four and five being the wrong way round, I've written up the review....though I'm hoping to get to see this again at some point so can do another review if you would prefer? Do let me know!
Man On Wire
I have to start off with an confession: when I sat down to watch this film I did so with a mixture of hope and trepidation. Hope, as I remember when the book To Reach the Clouds, on which this film is based, was released in 2002. I read about this charismatic and fearless wire walker who dared attempt, and conquer, various feats of what seemed at the time breathtaking idiocy – including his first wire walk between the towers of the Notre Dame Cathedral - and I thought: How can this man be human? Trepidation as I believed the title a terrible pun on the film Man on Fire. I feared that, if the title starts off so badly, how will the rest of the film fare? And here is the answer: Magnificently (and I got it wrong about the title, but more of that later).
The story begins with a young Philippe Petit, 17 years old, sat in a dentist’s waiting room in Paris. Spying an artist’s impression of the as yet unbuilt World Trade Centre, Petit instinctively draws a line between the two rooftops…and so his dream is born – Petit will wire walk between the Twin Towers. In simple terms, this is about how Petit and his team went about putting this plan into action. But this film is so much more than that. By combining archive footage and stills, interviews with the people involved, and a brilliant dramatic reconstruction, Man on Wire sets about sharing this exciting story which will drag you, hooked, right to the end.
The moment Petit steps out onto a wire suspended above Notre Dame, the honest beauty becomes apparent. And suspended is the perfect word for it. As one, the audience shared a collective sharp in take of breath, followed by some obvious sounds of relief – and even a little cheer rose up - as he began his cheeky and awesome performance. I did not initially get why they call this man the ‘poet of the sky’, but here is where I start to understand. His utter belief in himself is mesmerising, but more than that is the obvious fun he is having. The childlike glee that clearly Petit still oozes carries this film to another level. Thank goodness nobody gave him Ritalin as a child.
This film will move you to tears – well, it did me. It was funny, possibly sometimes unintentionally so: look out for Jean-Francois, a quite adorable and comical man who, like any true comedy actor, keeps the best lines for himself.
On another note, the poignancy this film brings is yet another surprise, and this is all gracefully backed by the unintrusive and thoughtful music composed by Michael Nyman.
Although friends, comrades, lovers, have come and gone throughout Petit’s adventures, they all return to provide witness to this madman / poet of the sky – some accounts are still tinged with a certain amount of bitterness, and even in one case a former collaborator retained an unwavering belief that he was right to abandon the project at a pretty crucial moment! But the love and admiration they all have for him remains intact; emphasising again this impish man’s inevitable appeal.
When he was finally arrested the details of complaint say simply ‘MAN ON WIRE’. Yeah sure, he was. He was also magnificent, and on fire.
word count: 557 (sorry!) |
|
