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Man on Wire (2008)

tomatometer

100

Average Rating: 8.4/10
Reviews Counted: 151
Fresh: 151 | Rotten: 0

James Marsh's doc about artist Phililppe Petit's artful caper brings you every ounce of suspense that can be wrung from a man on a (suspended) wire.

100

Average Rating: 8.5/10
Critic Reviews: 40
Fresh: 40 | Rotten: 0

James Marsh's doc about artist Phililppe Petit's artful caper brings you every ounce of suspense that can be wrung from a man on a (suspended) wire.

audience

87

liked it
Average Rating: 4.1/5
User Ratings: 25,038

My Rating

Movie Info

On August 7, 1974, a 24-year-old French high-wire artist named Philippe Petit committed one of the most astonishing performance stunts of the late 20th century: he strung a thin cable in between the two towers of the World Trade Center and not only walked across, from one building to another, but did a nerve-wracking series of knee-bends and acrobatic movements on the cable, some 1,350 feet above the ground, before turning himself in. This occurred to the consternation and chagrin of Port

PG-13,

Documentary, Special Interest

Dec 9, 2008

$2.6M

Magnolia Pictures - Official Site External Icon

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All Critics (154) | Top Critics (40) | Fresh (151) | Rotten (0) | DVD (6)

It all makes for an absorbing, mischievously amusing yarn, whose climax unfolds with unexpected emotional force.

May 7, 2009 Full Review Source: Washington Post
Washington Post
Top Critic IconTop Critic

In this exhilarating, palm-moistening documentary by British filmmaker James Marsh (Wisconsin Death Trip), the twin towers are back to celebrate one of their finest moments.

November 10, 2008 Full Review Source: Film.com
Film.com
Top Critic IconTop Critic

By any rational gauge, Petit's WTC obsession was flat-out crazy, but Marsh takes a limpid, nonjudgmental view of it all.

October 18, 2008 Full Review Source: Christian Science Monitor
Christian Science Monitor
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The erasure of the towers adds poignance and irony to a documented event that is inherently thrilling and beautiful.

October 18, 2008 Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Though we know how it ends, it unfolds with suspense. And though it lacks any discussion of the towers' destruction, it succeeds as a tribute to their birth.

October 18, 2008 Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | Comments (2)
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic IconTop Critic

James Marsh tells Petit's story, the most inspiring 'heist' in modern history, a Frenchman's stroll between two 110 story buildings in lower Manhattan.

August 29, 2008 Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel
Orlando Sentinel
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The pains of the public eye are acknowledged just as much as the joy this artistic endeavour brought people.

April 8, 2011 Full Review Source: What Culture | Comment (1)
What Culture

Despite a known outcome, James Marsh's documentary offers sublime thrills - grafting the tense suspense of a heist film onto an existential dissection of artistic accomplishment and true friendship.

September 19, 2010 Full Review Source: Suite101.com
Suite101.com

The tension builds incrementally, reaching almost unbearable heights at its dizzying climax.

July 6, 2010 Full Review Source: Sight and Sound
Sight and Sound

click to read full review

March 26, 2010 Full Review Source: Movies for the Masses
Movies for the Masses

Interviewed today, Petit is a whale of a storyteller, and he recalls with relish the chilling details of that amazing day.

April 23, 2009 Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix
Boston Phoenix

Man On Wire's cinematic tension that in the wire Philippe Petit balanced on as he walked between the Twin Towers in the history-making high wire stunt shown in this compelling documentary. The film's also a poignant memorial to the hallowed Twin To

April 3, 2009 Full Review Source: About.com
About.com

Not only a fun heist movie but also a moving tale of spiritual uplift and beauty.

February 27, 2009 Full Review Source: CHUD

The details of how the event was planned and staged are fascinating, but a crucial element missing from the film is good cinematography of the actual event.

February 8, 2009 Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | Comments (3)
Laramie Movie Scope

A feat like the one Philippe Petit pulled off deserves to be documented.

December 24, 2008 Full Review Source: Window to the Movies
Window to the Movies

I would have found it easier to get emotionally invested in Le Coup (rather than abstractly awed) if I had a better sense of his coup de foudre.

December 17, 2008 Full Review Source: Cinerina

Petit transforms his stories into mini-masterpieces of performance.

December 16, 2008 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | Comment (1)
eFilmCritic.com

Man on Wire is absolutely breathtaking, a documentary as life-affirming as it is artistically intoxicating.

December 5, 2008 Full Review Source: BrandonFibbs.com
BrandonFibbs.com

Present-day interviews and modern re-enactments provide the piece with its structure, but it's the awe-inspiring archival footage that makes this a giddy watch.

November 26, 2008 Full Review Source: Creative Loafing
Creative Loafing

It's a great deal of fun, playing not unlike a crafty caper film with loads of spine-tingling suspense.

November 21, 2008 Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid
Combustible Celluloid

Une oeuvre d'une puissance dramatique inouïe

October 29, 2008 Full Review Source: Panorama

It's a story worth telling, yes -- but after 90 minutes, it's hard not to wonder if the storyteller can talk about anything else.

October 18, 2008 Full Review Source: AV Club | Comments (2)
AV Club

Audience Reviews for Man on Wire

A stuntman/performer dreams up a stunt impossible to ignore in the modern day world full of been there, done that. True enough, I wondered what's the big deal, "a guy on a tightrope", blah, blah, blah, yada, yada. Fueling these thoughts, the man himself, Monsieur Petit, seems a shameless attention hog, one whom it inadvertently pleases one to ignor. But then, the stunt itself ... jaw droppingly, utterly un-friggen-believable! See it.
May 28, 2013
UniversalDreamer

Super Reviewer

A beatific documentary about a sole subject, this film was basically all about the feat that Petite pulled off, which comes off as sentimental and assured. Still, I would have liked to see a broader view of the accomplishment, one that possibly exaggerated Petite's abilities, showed more backstory, and the way he became a wire walker. Not much is shown on Petite's abilities other than his illegal yet masterful attempts at walking across some of the most famous locations in the world. The subject of the entire documentary wasn't given credence to showcase himself, except in interviews. In said interviews he comes off as childish, imaginative, and has a memory like a steel trap. Instead of truly looking into the depth of the subject the film uses interviews, and those dowdy recreations that pop up on episodes of America's Most Wanted. Though I found the footage of him walking on the wire truly ingratiating and just as feel good as they were purposing it to be, it didn't reel me in with anything all too interesting or new. Beside that the aftermath of the event wasn't shown in a true light and was further romanticized by Petite's ex, who viewed his infidelity as kismet rather than the delusions of a newly made icon. Most of the film covers the buildup to the event, assembling the crew, getting past security, and rigging the equipment up on the top floors of the newly created World Trade Center towers. It varies between flashbacks and interviews and that becomes quite confusing and annoying to boot. Really, it has its moments and was touching at times, but otherwise it was just wishy washy and slightly unpleasant.
August 8, 2010
FrizzDrop

Super Reviewer

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