Man on Wire (2008)

May 10, 2009

Netflix Stream, Seattle, WA

** / ****

By Scott Muoio

What is the purpose of a documentary? To inform? To persuade? To entertain? To shed new light on a previously unexplored topic? Man on Wire perplexes me in that it does none of these things. Instead, it takes the story of Philippe Petit, a clownish French juggler and tight rope walker who on August 7, 1974 illegally traversed his way between New York City’s World Trade Center Towers on a wire, and turns it into a bore.

The good in the documentary is its unique ability to effectively present three windows into the world of Philippe Petit and his gangly group of henchman. The first window is an astonishing amount of photos and home movies filmed by the self-obsessed Petit and his crew at the time of their adventures. The second is seamless integration of staged scenes that build the story like a cinematic thriller. The third is Petit, himself and the other wacky personalities that chronicle their exploits with passionate commentary, zany stories, and sentimental tears. All of this seems like great filmmaking, and according to film rating aggregate website Rottentomatoes.com, every critic agrees that it is fabulous. The problem is that for all the film’s expert craftsmanship it would have been better suited as a 30-minute affair rather than an hour and half melodrama. As it stands, the material doesn’t suit the method resulting in laborious tedium.

While watching the film many questions popped into my head: Did Philippe have a job during his decade of wire theatrics? Who financed his gallivanting from France to America and back, over and over again? Who exactly were these people that helped him? There is much show and little tell in Man on Wire. Maybe that is the point. If it is, I didn’t get it.

Bottom line: Man on Wire is an interesting idea for a documentary and has the pieces to be excellent, but as it turns out it may just be better to think about than actually view.

Director: James Marsh

Producer: Simon Chinn – Wall to Wall

Starring: Philippe Petit

Original Music: Josh Ralph (title theme), Michael Nyman

Editor: Jinx Godfrey