EVERY DREAM BEGINS WITH A SINGLE STEP.Â
In the early 1970s, French street performer Philippe Petit (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) sees a picture of the newly built World Trade Center in a magazine and decides that the goal of his life is to walk a tightrope between the Twin Towers. Petit’s story was first told in the excellent documentary Man on Wire (2008), but a fictional take on it would give filmmakers with deep enough pockets and creative minds the chance to really give the audience a feeling of what it would be like to stand on that wire along with Petit. This film is a technical triumph; with the help of outstanding 3D effects, Robert Zemeckis gives us a hair-raising experience. Gordon-Levitt also brings considerable charm to his French character.
2015-U.S. 123 min. Color-B/W. Widescreen. Produced by Jack Rapke, Tom Rothman, Steve Starkey, Robert Zemeckis. Directed by Robert Zemeckis. Screenplay: Robert Zemeckis, Christopher Browne. Book: Philippe Petit (“To Reach the Clouds”). Cinematography: Dariusz Wolski. Cast: Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Philippe Petit), Ben Kingsley (Papa Rudy), Charlotte Le Bon (Annie Allix), Clément Sibony, James Badge Dale, César Domboy.
Last word: “[Gordon-Levitt] went into intensive wire-walking training with Philippe. Joe went and lived with Philippe, ate all his meals with Philippe and it was like a wire-walking boot camp where Philippe taught him how to do it. But the whole time, Joe was watching Philippe’s every move, and of course, like all great actors, he didn’t mimic Philippe. He took the essence of Philippe and made him his own.” (Zemeckis, Deadline)
