Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Buy Now
or Get more Details!
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: DVD
Brand: MAGNOLIA FILMS
EAN: 0876964001564
Feature: On August 7th 1974, a young Frenchman named Philippe Petit stepped out on a wire and illegally rigged between New York's twin towers. After nearly an hour dancing on the wire, he was arrested, taken for psychological evaluation, and brought to jail before he was finally released. This documentary complies Petit s footage to show the numerous extraordinary challenges he faced in completing the arti
Format: Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Item Dimensions: 500
Label: Magnolia Home Entertainment
Languages: EnglishOriginal LanguageFrenchOriginal LanguageEnglishSubtitledSpanishSubtitled
Manufacturer: Magnolia Home Entertainment
MPN: 10156
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Magnolia Home Entertainment
Region Code: 1
Release Date: December 09, 2008
Running Time: 94 minutes
Studio: Magnolia Home Entertainment
Theatrical Release Date: 2008
Features:- On August 7th 1974, a young Frenchman named Philippe Petit stepped out on a wire and illegally rigged between New York's twin towers. After nearly an hour dancing on the wire, he was arrested, taken for psychological evaluation, and brought to jail before he was finally released. This documentary complies Petit s footage to show the numerous extraordinary challenges he faced in completing the arti
Editorial Review:
Product Description:
On aug 7 1974 a young frenchman names philippe petit stepped out on a wire illegally rigged between the world trade centers twon towers. After dancing for nearly an hour on the wire he was arrested. This documentary incorporates petits footage to show the numerous extraordinary challenges he faced. Studio: Magnolia Pict Hm Ent Release Date: 12/09/2008 Rating: Pg13
Amazon.com:
Native New Yorkers know to expect the unexpected, but who among them could've predicted that a man would stroll between the towers of the World Trade Center? French high-wire walker Philippe Petit did just that on August 7th, 1974. Petit's success may come as a foregone conclusion, but British filmmaker James Marsh's pulse-pounding documentary still plays more like a thriller than a non-fiction entry--in fact, it puts most thrillers to shame. Marsh (Wisconsin Death Trip, The King) starts by looking at Petit's previous stunts. First, he took on Paris's Notre Dame Cathedral, then Sydney's Harbour Bridge before honing in on the not-yet-completed WTC. The planning took years, and the prescient Petit filmed his meetings with accomplices in France and America. Marsh smoothly integrates this material with stylized re-enactments and new interviews in which participants emerge from the shadows as if to reveal deep, dark secrets which, in a way, they do, since Petit's plan was illegal, "but not wicked or mean." The director documents every step they took to circumvent security, protocol, and physics as if re-creating a classic Jules Dassin or Jean-Pierre Melville caper. Though still photographs capture the feat rather than video, the resulting images will surely blow as many minds now as they did in the 1970s when splashed all over the media. Not only did Petit walk, he danced and even lay down on the cable strung between the skyscrapers. Based on his 2002 memoir, Man on Wire defines the adjective "awe-inspiring." --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Average Rating: 
Rating: 
-
It's clear to me that the Oscar was granted due to the subject matter; the nostalgia for the time when the Twin Towers were brand new, and when America was free enough that a man could actually wire walk between them without being picked off by a police or military sniper in mid-performance or being sentenced to life after he walked off the wire. It's impossible for an American to watch this movie and not be constantly reminded of 9/11; this movie takes back the Towers from Bin Laden to some extent, ... Read More
Rating: 
-
The Bottom Line:
Man on Wire isn't the best documentary ever made, but it tells an interesting story well (so well at times that it plays like a thriller during its climax) and features such a charismatic performance by Philippe Petit (as himself presumably) that it's no wonder it broke into the mainstream; I found the film a bit slow at times before its strong climax but have no qualms recommending this well-made and pleasant film.
3/4
Rating: 
-
...there were three people: 1. Evel Knievel 2. Rick Sylvester (July 1976, Asgard ski jump for the pre-credit stunt of the James Bond movie, "The Spy Who Loved Me") and Phillipe Petit.
Oh, and for those of you who gave this a one-star, who obsess over "what if the wire broke", "what if he dropped his pole", "what if he plummeted onto the crowd watching"...."what if this" and "what if that"...Hey, shut up, dad!
I mean let's review NY in '74: muggers are running wild in the streets, ... Read More
Rating: -
`Man on Wire' is a documentary about Phillipe Petit's shocking 1974 high wire walk between the Twin Towers. The movie starts with a short history of his previous high wire capers, which included spanning the towers of Notre Dame and the Sydney Harbour Bridge (thankfully well-documented by his crew) , and, briefly, Petit's telling of how his dream of crossing the Towers came about in a dentist's waiting room. Most of the movie, however, deals with the logistics of his most famous crossing, which included ... Read More
Rating: -
This film was checked out for 3 months at my local video store & now I know why. What an amazing and inspiring story! I can't recommend this movie enough. It was such a joy to watch from beginning to end. The music was beautiful and the experience of watching this feat unfold was jaw dropping! It leaves you in awe of what can be accomplished, even the seemingly impossible.
