"Man on Wire is 65/65 at Rotten Tomatoes still...."
On the heals of One Missed Call's bid for the perfect rotten score, Man on Wire is 100% in the good direction. have to figure a way to sneak away to see it this weekend. Any one see it yet? Thoughts?
I can be pretty cynical about these types of stunts and what they supposedly represent about the human spirit (what's that saying? sometimes a cigar is just a cigar?) but this hooked me. And yes, 9/11 does make it much more poignant. The story is incredible, but the filmmaking is good, too. I was very tired when I saw it, so I nodded off a bit during some of the parts about the planning, even though it was quite fascianting in its own way, but once they got to the execution of the wire walk, I was thrilled. Only criticism: every time they showed the guy riding a unicycle, it made it a little harder for me to root for him, because unicycles are the dumbest things ever. I see people riding them around town as if they're actually a viable form of transportation...FOH.
---- I check for: Serengeti, Zeroh, Open Mike Eagle, Jeremiah Jae, Moka Only.
4. "Great movie, saw it this week." In response to Reply # 0
I'm kinda surprised at the 100% RottenTomatoes rating since that really hyped me up on it.
It kept my interest, and Phillippe Petit is a pretty likeable guy and animated storyteller. There was a little bit of fat they coulda trimmed IMO but I recommend it for anyone.
I couldn't come even close to understanding how beautiful it might be to see the walk actually take place, even through still photos, until seeing it for myself...it's hard to explain, but when you see how it happened and all the obstacles overcome and listen to the participants talk about it, it feels like a completely pure occurrence, there was absolutely nothing contrived about the passion and commitment of the participants, the joy they got, the suspense preceding the accomplishment, etc. The absurdity that these people put so much dedication and planning into something that seems so frivolous, and that it created so much sincere passion and happiness, somehow makes it resonate even more. Like somehow by the end of it I was completely sold on their conviction that the towers were built just for Petit. Just totally gripping stuff, best movie I've seen in a long time.
7. "Just finished watching it" In response to Reply # 0
Really enjoyed it
One thing I did want to hear was how he felt about 9/11 not really the entire thing but His biggest accomplishment was crossing the WTC and then just seeing them go down. He did something no other person ever did
11. "Damn this dude got stones. Blew it not catchin this on the big screen." In response to Reply # 0
Sundance channel is showing it now in case anyone else missed it & wants to peep. I missed the first 15 minutes or so but this doc certainly lived up to the hype. Crazy process to get it done but they did a nice job combining the reenactments with the actual footage & stills.
You can also read an excerpt from the book at that link.
Personally, I can't even read the bits about the tightrope walk without getting clammy hands and an urpy tummy. I very much doubt I could watch the movie, even knowing that it ends well.
The thing with the book, though, back to the book, McCann says he's book-ending the tightrope walk and the 2001 terrorist attacks -- and Silverblatt says that this is a book about women and McCann says he's probably right. I've only barely started it and I think it's lovely. McCann has a great voice.
~ ~ ~ All meetings end in separation All acquisition ends in dispersion All life ends in death - The Buddha
Frank Mackey Member since May 23rd 2006 2903 posts
Tue Sep-29-09 07:21 AM
17. "Man, I was freaked out a couple times" In response to Reply # 13
Watched it last night on Sundance. Being TERRIFIED of heights, just thinking about what he was doing had me queezy. Seeing him up there setting it all up was even worse. But once he got going on the wire and began talking about it, it calmed me down a lot. Sort of like his main friend that helped him. Once he saw Petit on the wire and how much he was enjoying it, it settled him down.
14. "Watched it on Sundance last night, as awesome as advertised" In response to Reply # 0
A wonderful tribute to the insanity of the human spirit, not only that of Philippe Petit but of the architects and engineers who devised the WTC. Obviously 9/11 hangs heavy above the film, and I found the parallels between the two acts interesting even though it's never specifically mentioned. Of course, one used the WTC for carnage and the other for art and personal satisfaction.
I would like to know what Petit felt on 9/11, though, considering his deep connection to those two buildings.
16. "That hide & go seek moment was funny. But what about the 1st guard." In response to Reply # 15
I could've sworn he said a guard was sitting there with his flashlight pointing towards them when they got up from underneath the tarp. But then they just tiptoed by him anyways? I didn't get that part.
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