Walk the Line

Walk the Line is © Sony Pictures, 2005

Starring:

Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash
Reese Witherspoon as June Carter
Robert Patrick as Ray Cash
Ginnifer Goodwin as Vivian Cash
Dallas Roberts as Sam Phillips
Directed by: James Mangold

RATING:
Rarely does Hollywood deliver in such a way as it did with Walk the Line. Unlike the recent Ray Charles movie that was very plastic and one-dimensional, this film delivers a great story with genuine feeling and sense of struggle. While Hollywood worked the story line to have a nice happy ending, I did not feel it stretched it too far to compromise the story and its characters. There are four things that make this movie great: the plot, the embodiment of Johnny Cash by Joaquin Phoenix, the performance of Reese Witherspoon, and the element of a messy long unrequited love. Ah… is there anything like unrequited love? This film explores how denial of such love can actually help it grow bigger and stronger than anything else.

A strong symbolic presence in this film is that of the train and the railroad tracks. It is a train that Cash gets on when he leaves home to begin his adult life. Hesings of a train ride to Folsom Prison on the very first song he composed himself. At first the beat and flow of his music is described as following the pace of a train on the tracks. Finally, the passion in his music can be contributed to the experiences in a life that was one huge train wreck. Johnny Cash enlists in military service and marries his high school sweet heart upon release. Unfortunately for Cash he grows to feel trapped in his marriage as he grows older largely in part due to the lack of understanding he shares with his wife. Cash is also haunted by tragedy he experienced as a child as well as a very dysfunctional relationship with his father. As his career takes off he begins to tour the country and ends up meeting June Carter, a singer he has always idolized and becomes extremely fond of her.

The pain, struggle, drug addiction, and the true mystery of Johnny Cash are presented very well by Joaquin Phoenix. His performance brings this story life, particularly when it comes to the dark moments in the plot. The great longing Cash feels for June Carter is the driving force in the plot and Phoenix's chemistry with Reese Witherspoon is so electric the viewer can feel this longing. The character of June Carter is a strong and complex one as she is the driving force of Cash's later years in life. The performance by Witherspoon here is unbelievable. She shows the incredible range her acting abilities can reach which left me really impressed with her performance. While the plot is good, it is the performance of these two actors that shape this movie into a true triumph. Chemistry is underrated in movies, and great chemistry is really special when it is present. While the viewer gets to enjoy many things in this picture, it is the chemistry that leaves a long lasting effect.

I recommend this movie to everyone, even if you know nothing of Johnny Cash's music or like rockabilly. The Folsom Prison concert could have been longer, as well as his performance of "Ring of Fire" but I'm just nitpicking here. The truth is I could not find anything wrong with this movie. It was a great experience from beginning to end. There are no clichés in this film, even at the end. The little details injected in the plot where also nice. The character of Sam Phillips really helped place the time and space of the story and was a nice surprise along with the appearances of the other musicians on his label. I am already looking forward to the next time I get to see it.