It seems that Robert Zemeckis is hoping to To Reach For the Clouds, which is a 3D narrative remake of the hit documentary Man on Wire. The film already has someone in its sights for the lead role, with Joseph Gordon-Levitt being eyed to star, although he’s yet to be officially offered a deal.
Producer Tom Rothman has acquired the rights to the memoirs of Philippe Petit, who walked on a tightrope strung between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center on August 7, 1974. Zemeckis is planning to direct from a script he is co-writing with Christopher Browne. The director has apparently always wanted to make a feature about Petit, but it was Rothman, who’s new company TriStar Productions is focussing on high concept 3D ideas, who got him involved in this film.
The actual tightrope walk won’t be featured until towards the end of the movie, with the bulk of the film looking at on how Philippe Petit and a group of friends meticulously planned what was later called the ‘artistic crime of the century.’ It took six years from conception to execution. Eventually in 1974 they snuck up to the top of the towers to string a 450-foot cable from one building to the other, using a custom-made 26-foot balancing pole. The heist elements of the story are (inevitably) being compared to Ocean’s Eleven.
The original Man on Wire documentary, directed by James Marsh, won the Oscar for Best Documentary in 2009. The feature version hops to shoot this summer.
Leave a Reply (if comment does not appear immediately, it may have been held for moderation)