FRENCH high-wire performer Philippe Petit decided that he wanted to cap his career by performing his act on a cable strung between the World Trade Centre’s twin towers, then under construction in New York.

Petit’s book “To Reach the Clouds” forms the foundation for writer/director Robert Zemeckis’s film in which narrative simplicity, visual beauty and breathtaking special effects combine to tell how, after nightfall on August 6, 1974, Petit and a small crew of enthusiastic supporters smuggled the necessary equipment up 102 floors and strung the cable. As the sun rose and a mist came in masking him from sight until the last moment, Petit set off across the void.

The film does a delightful job of recounting how Petit learned his craft, tutored by circus high-wire performer Papa Rudy (Ben Kingsley). Joseph Gordon-Levitt gives a convincing portrayal of Petit’s skills and the tensions involved, not only of the cable but also in the threat of the unforgiving consequences of the least mistake. Filming the walk involved creating quite miraculous special effects that take special significance as we remember that the location no longer exists.

Petit’s determination is palpable but not flamboyant. He knew the risks, he took them, he survived and that was that. But what a “that” indeed! Vertiginous notwithstanding, it makes powerful, pleasant cinema for all ages.

At Palace Electric, Capitol 6 and Limelight.