HOLLYWOOD
Bhavya Sadhwani
There is so much information around us to soak in that we end up discovering things that leave a great impact albeit a little late. In this case, almost 6 years! Bored of deciding what to watch on Netflix, my younger sibling insisted that I give this movie called The Walk a try. She insisted that it’ll be an exhilarating watch and it turned out to be just that and much more.
This movie made me read up on an enigmatic man called Philippe Petit. A France native, Petit illegally executed a ‘coup’ back in 1974 where he walked on a wire rigged between the USA’s twin towers to record his name in history. At that time, he was persecuted by the authorities for breaking the law but later credited for bringing acceptance to the buildings that were initially deemed architecturally ugly. Years on, this film serves as a beautiful tribute to the twin towers that were destroyed in a devastating tragedy which took several innocent lives.
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The WTC walk wasn’t his first rodeo. In 1971, his first public (and illegal) wire walk was between the towers of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. His next came in 1973 when he walked between the pylons of the enormous steel arch Sydney Harbour Bridge in Australia. Perhaps, these were just a warm-up before the big event.
Filmmaker Robert Zemeckis who has movies like Cast Away, Forrest Gump and Back To The Future series among others to his credit, took it upon himself to bring this inspiring story to the silver screen.
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Revolving around the young Frenchman, this historic incident of the wire-walking was recreated for the audiences, right from the conception, ideation and the final execution of this unbelievably gutsy idea that took birth in Petit’s mind after he saw a photo of the buildings in a magazine. He did the unthinkable when he walked the wire 1,350 feet up amid photo and film coverage in 1974 and went viral (when it wasn’t even a thing back then).
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Zemeckis is a visionary director who ensures that even in his mediocre films there are at least two-three sequences that leave the viewers dazzled. His penchant for creating extraordinary sights and sounds makes each film of his, a scintillating experience. The Walk is no less.
The last 45-50 minutes are so exhilarating that you are likely to experience vertigo. If not that then, many of you will have a heart-in-the-mouth situation. The way he has recreated the iconic walk reimagining minutest details is a big achievement in itself. The movie is a masterpiece. The lead played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt deserves way more appreciation for his uber convincing performance than he did at the time of its release.
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Not just the main act, the craziness and determination to do the walk is so beautifully emoted by Levitt that you can feel it in your veins. The movie also stars Ben Kingsley in a pivotal role of Levitt’s mentor who teaches him the craft of not doing ‘too much’.
He not only walked the wire but also went down on one knee, laid down, conversed with the birds and taunted police officers who were ready to arrest him on either end. In total, Petit crossed the quarter-mile-high wire eight times.
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For the unversed, when The Walk was premiered at the New York Film Festival, there were reports of people throwing up in the men's loo after suffering virtual vertigo while watching Petit walk the wire, turn and even lie down upon a cable stretched between the towers.
If you are looking to break the monotony and watch something that will leave you satisfied beyond words, then I highly recommend The Walk. If you do end up taking this adventurous ride then prep yourself for the metallic creak of the cable as Petit walks; the sound of wind passing through his clothes and through his hair and the muffled sound of traffic noises floating up from 110 stories below. Get ready for palpable sensations as you will feel like you are a part of Petit's coup.
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You can stream The Walk on Netflix. Check out the trailer:
