MOVIE · 2008

Man on Wire

CrimeDocumentaryThriller94 min

In August 1974, French wire walker Philippe Petit slipped into New York’s World Trade Center and stepped onto a cable strung illegally between the Twin Towers, 1,350 feet above Manhattan. Petit retraces the planning and the walk alongside friends and collaborators, including Jean François Heckel and insider Barry Greenhouse, whose help made the stunt possible. Through interviews, archival footage, still photographs, and recreations, the film follows Petit's path from earlier high-wire feats at Notre Dame to the night of hiding from guards, hauling equipment upstairs, and mounting the wire.