Man on Wire

Last week I went to see the above movie, about Pierre Petit: the man who walked a tightrope between the twin towers in 1974. The movie was really quite arresting. The shots of New York City in the 70s, of all the men who worked on the towers and their progress. It was amazing to see them as skeletons before they were completed.

Anyway, Pierre first had the dream of walking between the towers when he saw a picture of them in a Paris newspaper - before they were built. He practiced for years and planned his secret feat down to the inch. before he walked between the towers, Pierre had also wire-walked between the towers of Notre Dame and over a bridge in the Sydney Harbor. He practiced walking the distance between the towers in his french countryside backyard, and had his friends shake the wire back and forth so he could prepare for the wind that would be blowing a mile up in the air.

The most amazing thing about the movie, I thought, was how much of it was comprised of historical footage and photographs. The view from the top of those towers was breathtaking, and made New York City look like a tame wilderness. In some of the shots all you can see is sky, and you can't help but think how beautiful it is how a preposterous dream can become a reality.