See. This. Film.

You might not recognize the name Philippe Petit, but if you are old enough you may remember the man who crossed the space between the twin towers at the top of the World Trade Center in 1974, walking on a high wire. He didn't just cross it once, he spent 45 minutes going back and forth, dancing in the air 102 stories above Manhattan. Man On Wire is a new film that documents Petit's performance that day, as well as all of the preparation that went into it.

The film plays like a heist movie. Petit started dreaming of this act as a young man, before the WTC was even built. Once it was mostly complete and open to the public, he spent months observing and taking notes in the building. He and his team (a pretty ragtag group made up of a few friends and some last-minute recruits) smuggled their supplies to the still-unfinished tops of both towers. Then on the eve of what he termed "the coup", they secured the cable and the following morning Manhattan woke up to see Petit suspended between the towers. Amazing.

Equally amazing is the fact that not once during the film is 9/11/2001 mentioned. It was certainly in the back of my mind as I watched, but I found Petit's story to be transcendent. As I write this two days after the 7th anniversary I am reflecting on how the entire tragedy -- whatever its source -- has been hijacked, perverted, and multiplied exponentially in the past 7 years. We've been bludgeoned with it. It was so beautiful to watch this movie and see those towers stand for something else -- something so improbable yet whole.

If you have a chance to see this on a large screen, it is well worth it (even if you have to pay $3 for fictitious amenities. Hey, Bob Redford needs our money!) It was breathtaking and beautiful.