In 2015, director Robert Zemeckis took moviegoers back to 1974 to witness one man’s impossible dream.
The biographical drama The Walk (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, rated PG-13, $34.98, 123 minutes) now arrives on Blu-ray to showcase the antics of legendary high-wire artist Philippe Petit and his attempt to stroll between the World Trade Center towers, 110 stories tall and a quarter mile above the ground.
Although the performance by Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the inspirationally insane Frenchman shines, the true stars of the film are the digital artists recreating the legendary skyscrapers and a surrounding backdrop of the Big Apple.
Suffice to report, the high-definition transfer needs to be admired on the largest television possible to not only visually appreciate and remember one of man’s greatest structural achievements, but the actual screen time Mr. Petit spends walking between them (whittled down to 15 minutes from the actual 45 minutes that the real Petit was on the wire).
Mr. Zemeckis delivers dazzling, vertigo-inducing movie magic throughout as Mr. Petit and his accomplices get to know every facet of the World Trade Center, and viewers get to celebrate in their incredible accomplishment.
Besides a smattering of deleted scenes, extras include only three featurettes clicking in less than 30 minutes in total.
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However, a pair of those segments — “First Steps: Learning to Walk the Wire” and “The Amazing Walk” — sparkles any time the enthusiastic Mr. Petit appears on the screen to explain his motivations or teach Mr. Gordon-Levitt his craft.
Although the extras could have been much deeper — such as an optional commentary track with Mr. Gordon-Levitt and Mr. Petit or a documentary on the actual feat — home theater connoisseurs will not be disappointed. Even better, the package includes a 3D version of the movie for those tapped into the technology.
• Joseph Szadkowski can be reached at jszadkowski@washingtontimes.com.
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