The Walk (2015)

In 1974, high-wire artist Philippe Petit recruits a team of people to help him realize his dream: to walk the immense void between the World Trade Center towers.

Director:

Robert Zemeckis

Writers:

Robert Zemeckis (screenplay), Christopher Browne (screenplay)

Stars:

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Charlotte Le Bon, Guillaume Baillargeon

2 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Joseph Gordon-Levitt	...	Philippe Petit
Guillaume Baillargeon	...	Outdoor Café Man
Émilie Leclerc	...	Outdoor Café Woman (as Emilie Leclerc)
Mark Trafford	...	American Tourist
Inka Malovic	...	Woman in Chalk Circle
Lucas Ramacière	...	Boy in Chalk Circle
Martin Lefebvre	...	Gendarme
Philippe Bertrand	...	Gendarme
Laurence Deschênes	...	Young Girl with Candy
Patricia Tulasne	...	Dental Office Receptionist
Jean-Robert Bourdage	...	Dental Patient
Sylvie Lemay	...	Dental Patient
Sasha Dominique	...	Dental Patient
Soleyman Pierini	...	Boy Petit
Jade Kindar-Martin	...	Circus High Wire Performer

Storyline

Twelve people have walked on the moon, but only one man - Philippe Petit (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) - 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, a PG-rated, all-audience entertainment for moviegoers 8 to 80, unlike anything audiences have seen before, is a love letter to Paris and New York City in the 1970s, ...

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Plot Keywords:

new york city | 1970s | skyscraper | tightrope walker | planning | 

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Taglines:

From the director of Forrest Gump, Cast Away and Flight.

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Genres:

Adventure | Biography | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for thematic elements involving perilous situations, and for some nudity, language, brief drug references and smoking

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

9 October 2015 (USA)

Also Known As:

To Walk the Clouds

Filming Locations:

Montréal, Québec, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$1,560,299 (USA) (2 October 2015)

Gross:

$10,137,502 (USA) (6 November 2015)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE), TriStar Productions, ImageMovers

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Datasat Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ben Kingsley and James Badge Dale starred together in Iron Man 3 (2013).

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Goofs

The characters are seen exiting a subway station of the J M Z line. The Z line didn't exist until 1988.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Philippe Petit: "Why?" That is the question people ask me most. Pourquoi? Why? For what? Why do you walk on the wire? Why do you tempt fate? Why do you risk death. But, I don't think of it this way. I never even say this word, death. La mort. Yes of okay, I said it once, or maybe three times, just now... But watch, I *will* not say it again. Instead, I use the opposite word. Life. For me, to walk on the wire, this is life. C'est la vie.
Philippe Petit: [now standing in the torch of the Statue of Liberty] So, ...

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Connections

Featured in The Amazing Walk (2016)

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Soundtracks

Für Elise
Written by Ludwig van Beethoven

User Reviews

"The Walk" is stylish and entertaining

Robert Zemeckis' signature visual style and proclivity for bio-pics seemed perfect for a movie like The Walk, a film that manages to boast an interesting and entertaining story and dizzying cinematography. The Walk is based on the story of the real-life high wire artist Philippe Petit in 1974. Inspired by a circus he saw at a young age, Philippe begins planning an incredibly ambitious -- and highly illegal -- show in which he hangs a wire across the Twin Towers and walks across them. A majority of the story is dedicated to Petit gathering accomplices to help with the coup, practicing for the extreme conditions and planning how they will rig the wire. The clever writing allows you to connect with every character and understand why they're trying to attempt this impossible dream. The last 45 minutes or so is where "the walk" actually happens. The scenes of Petit and co rigging the wire are just as tense as the wire-walking scenes, which are accented by some of the best cinematography of the year. The cinematography is really the star of the movie here. The shots panning down towards the ground make the towers almost look endless, and it adds so much tension to the walking scenes. The Walk is a stylish and entertaining look at one of the biggest artistic feats of the last century, and you need to watch it in IMAX 3D.