A real life romance that’s on top of the world.
No, “Skywalkers: A Love Story” is not a romance between two “Star Wars” fans, but rather, it tells the story of a romance between two climbers who would scale the tallest buildings in the world, illegally and dangerously. So please read this review fresh from Sundance, before you go off thinking that.
There are people who would illegally climb tall buildings, towers, cranes, or anything up in the air, which would either kill them or give them social media fame. They’re called “Rooftoppers.” In the tradition of “Man on Wife” and “Free Solo,” we have this amazing doc that’s guaranteed to test your fear of heights, while getting to know Angela Nikolau and Vanya Beerkus, two Russian climbers and dreamers, who collaborate for the climb of their lives.
Why isn’t a character development without their beginnings and how they came to be?
Angela’s parents were from the circus, until hard times have fallen and her father leaves her mother for another woman. Her remaining caretaker was her grandma. And she leaves home to broaden her horizons.
Vanya’s parents never got along, so he often escaped to start climbing things. In his words: “The higher I was, the easier it is for me to breathe.” And he got enough followers and sponsors for him to travel the world.
She decides to compete with him, which leads to them meeting in person, which puts them on adventures, which has them falling in love, and which has them deciding to climb the Merdeka, which is the last tall skyscraper in Malaysia at 118 stories.
“Skywalkers: A Love Story” was directed by Jeff Zimbalist (who also wrote the film) and Maria Bukhonina (in her directorial debut). They both allow us to get to know Angela and Vanya, and how ambitious they were at climbing the skyscraper. We’re also able to see how they struggled to get through without getting caught. When workers were there, they had to hide in a small area with barely and air or water, and suffered from great headaches. And the worst part was it would last for hours. And when they do get their window of opportunity, it’s better you see it from their perspective than your perspective. And don’t ask me if I’ll climb it either.
Netflix has the good sense to help distribute this film, because of how it thrills us with how these two people know the risks of climbing (even seeing videos of people falling to their deaths), but are crazy and determinate enough to soar new heights. It also gets a one week theatrical release before it lands on the streaming site, and in my tristate area, it’s playing at the NYC Paris Theater. If you have a strong fear of heights, this will make you puke. But if you’re into fresh stories, then you have to keep watching. I respect people on both sides of the equation, and I understood why “The Walk,” the cover version of Philippe Petit’s Twin Towers walk, bombed at the box office.
In Select Theaters This Friday
Streaming on Netflix July 19