I used our new Netflix service to stream a great documentary last week.  Those of you that know me know that I’m an absolute sucker for a good documentary.  It doesn’t really matter what it’s about.  This particularly documentary won the Oscar the year it came out and I’ve been eager to see it ever since.

The film is about an incredible feat and an amazing man.  In 1974, Philippe Petit and his team secretly made it to the top of both World Trade Center Towers and managed to rig a cable between them.  Then, Philippe, a world-class tight rope walker, walked across no less than nine times while doing things like lying down.  Obviously, none of this was sanctioned by the folks at the WTC.

Roger Ebert said that this documentary feels like a “thriller” and I agree.  You find yourself wondering how it’s all going to work out even though you know that it obviously does all end well.  I also found myself wondering how the police were going to handle the situation once they figured out what was going on.

I was especially fascinated by Philippee’s ability to rally a team to help him do something that was marginally criminal, potentially life-threatening and, ultimately, of no real purpose.  Yet, his compelling vision of the “beauty” of it all seemed to win over all sorts of people for this “mission.”  It’s an interesting study in the power of vision-casting.

The twin towers ended up representing Philippe’s dreams and goals.

I must admit that it was weird to be watching the twin towers being built and all the people streaming in and out of the buildings in the archival footage.  The film avoids the issue of the destruction of the towers all together and I think they were wise to do so.  After a while, I found some peace in watching the towers again.  It was a dream for Phillippe to walk between them and it is good to leave them in that state throughout the film.

There’s some nudity near the end of the film that surprised me and, frankly, was totally unnecessary.  Still, overall, I found this film to be very entertaining.  If you are into well-made documentaries, this is one that should not be missed.