I knew about Philippe Petit walking between the Twin Towers from reading the children’s book, The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein back in 3rd grade. But after reading Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann, I was again immensely curious to see how this man accomplished his walk on a wire between the Twin Towers. I was specifically interested on how he managed to tie his cable between the towers. I don’t know why but I imagined that this was a one-man feat, which made it seem even more amazing to me. Contrary to my original thought, this was hardly a one-man feat. Philippe had all his friends on board to help him accomplish his dream, and at some point in the movie I really began to see why the feat had a deeper impact, more than the media had portrayed it to be.
The amount of time, money, and risk Philippe was taking with his relationships and physical body was crazy to think about. All of his friends were postponing their own lives and journey to join Philippe. They supported him and really cared about him, but I couldn’t see an inkling of concern Philippe had for his friends. To blatantly put it, he was quite selfish. When each of his friends were interviewed, his best friend Jean-Louis constantly spoke about Philippe’s safety and their relationship. But Philippe was so caught up describing how he accomplished sneaking past the guards, anchoring his cables and the excitement of it all. He was blind to see that it wasn’t just as simple as getting the job done, but there were major consequences bound to happen. What shocked me the most was when Philippe abandoned his friends after his walk and put them on hold when all this time they had put their lives on hold for his. It really was amazing to see the behind story and all the effort Philippe and his friends put into this once in a lifetime show, but heartbreaking to see what it was actually worth.
I was watching this documentary with my family on Wednesday night, and I explained how the relationship “was meant to stop” after the walking– my parents posed a similar question as yours: was it really worth it?
What if this was done with the police force and the Twin Towers staff backing Philippe’s team?
Would it be any less artistic?
Chloe and Lucius, I agree with both of you but I guess perhaps in Petits mind as long as he accomplished his dream nothing else really mattered. His relationship with Jean is what had most upset me. In the early parts of the documentary I recall her saying how in getting involved with him, he made it clear that his dream came before hers and so that she must put him before her. It is very sad that he left behind his closest friends after he accomplished his feet, especially considering the amount of time they wasted just to get him to be able to do it but I guess that is just life. People get used all the time and maybe he never really thought that he was using them. He might have genuinely loved them and cared for them but the attention and fame that came his way after he performed the walk changed who he was and this is what really diverted him away from his friends.
And Joshua, I dont think it would be any less artistic however it would’ve been less fulfilling for Philippe Petit. In the documentary he stated that one cause of him wanting to do it so badly was that it was like robbing a bank. It was full of excitement and the fact that it was illegal made it so much more desirable.
Hello all,
I would like to think that the walk between the Towers indeed changed Petit, but I do wonder – for the worse? For the better? Given his treatment of his friends, particularly Jean-Louis and Annie, it seems that he did change for the worse. Perhaps cheating death made him feel invincible and that he could do anything he wanted. Perhaps he felt unbounded and sought more thrill, and viewed his friends as holding him down. In any case, his feat remains remarkable, and though he came out of it alive, his character seems to have been scarred.