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By: Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
Date: 8th Oct 08
Format: Cinema
Mood: Epic
WHAT
MAN ON WIRE
WHERE
CREMORNE ORPHEUM, DENDY NEWTOWN, DENDY OPERA QUAYS, PALACE ACADEMY AND NORTON ST
WHEN
RELEASED OCT 16
WATCH THE TRAILER
HERE
WIN
TO ONE OF THREE DOUBLE PASSES, VALID FOR THE SEASON. JUST EMAIL WIN@TWOTHOUSAND.COM.AU WITH THE SUBJECT LINE 'SLIPPERY BUSINESS'. WINNERS WILL BE NOTIFIED BY EMAIL.
In 1974, French tightrope walker Philippe Petit strung up a cable between two corners of the World Trade Centre buildings in New York and went for an awe-inspiring stroll. Suddenly, the up-til-then ambivalent public response to the new constructions was converted into a fever of art-fuelled patriotism.
In MAN ON WIRE, director James Marsh combines interviews with the triumphant Petit and his collaborators with archival footage and non-cheesy re-enactments - resulting in a documentary that ultimately plays out like an Errol Morris-directed remake of RIFIFI starring the cast of CIRQUE DE SOLIEL.
There's something genuinely spooky about watching a whole 90 minute film about the World Trade Centre that doesn't once mention the events of September 11, 2001. The strength of Marsh's film is that he doesn't have to: Petit's obsession with the buildings themselves is contagious, and somehow we find ourselves completely immersed in the intriguing logistics that lead to a moment of stunning performance art dare-devilry.
MAN ON WIRE celebrates the Twin Towers' birth instead of their demise, showing with dazzling force that the personal is, as always, the political.