Robert Zemeckis is tackling the story of tightrope walker Philipe Petit, a story that was recently told in James Marsh‘s Oscar-winning documentary Man on Wire, which currently sits with a 100% rating on RottenTomatoes. It’s an interesting act to follow as you would think the only reason to dramatize the story would be if you could tell it any better… well can he?
The film is titled The Walk and Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as Petit with co-stars James Badge Dale, Ben Schwartz, Charlotte Le Bon, Clément Sibony and César Domboy. Here’s the official synopsis:
Twelve people have walked on the moon, but only one man has ever, or will ever, walk in the immense void between the World Trade Center towers. Guided by his real-life mentor, Papa Rudy (Ben Kingsley), and aided by an unlikely band of international recruits, Petit and his gang overcome long odds, betrayals, dissension and countless close calls to conceive and execute their mad plan.
Robert Zemeckis, the director of such marvels as Forrest Gump, Cast Away, Back to the Future, Polar Express and Flight, again uses cutting edge technology in the service of an emotional, character-driven story. With innovative photorealistic techniques and IMAX 3D wizardry, The Walk is true big-screen cinema, a chance for moviegoers to viscerally experience the feeling of reaching the clouds. The film is a love letter to Paris and New York City in the 1970s, but most of all, to the Towers of the World Trade Center.
The film hits theaters on October 2, 2015 and today the first trailer was released. Give it a look and see what you think.
