Walk the Line (2005) - Movie Details

He picked cotton, sold door to door, and served in the Air Force. He was a voice of rebellion that changed the face of rock and roll. An outlaw before today's rebels were born - and an icon they would never forget. He did all this before turning 30. And his name was Johnny Cash. "Walk the Line" explores the early years of the music legend, an artist who transcended musical boundaries to touch people...

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Movie Review

I'm not a big fan of musician biopics. Last year, when "Ray" garnered a Best Picture nomination, I was screaming protest. Great performances, decent movie, but hell no was it even close to Best Picture stature. Every single musician seems to have the same story: they get their big break, they have an up-and-down relationship with some woman and have to deal with drug addiction. Wow, how original. Full movie review »

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Comments

Anonymous says:

December 23, 2005

Griz Bear Man! We meet again! Up to a point, I totally agree with your review of "Walk the Line" (see Griz Bear Man review below). If Reese Witherspoon does not win an Oscar I will be mightily tempted to steal it and personally present it to her. She alone is worth the price of admission--some actors are BORN for certain roles and that is most true of her performance as June Carter. Still, there is much more to the movie than just her because Joaquin also kicks ass in his role as Johnny Cash. And there is a great story here, too. The friendship and love between June Carter and Johnny Cash portrayed in the movie is both hard-edged and sweet, at times deeply moving and touching. Basically, Mr. Griz Bear, you strike out with your review of Joaquin Phoenix, who also turns in an Oscar-worthy performance and does an amazing job of capturing the mannerisms, speaking voice, AND singing voiice of Johnny Cash. Let's face it, while it's true Jamie Foxx is off the register in his portrayal of Ray Charles, Joaquin is a close second. Don't tell me, he can't sing!

Simply put, this movie, NOT "King Kong, "is in my book THE movie of the season and gets from me a rave review, including Joaquin's singing!

Grade: A for the story and A+ for the acting.

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Anonymous says:

December 11, 2005

I give it a A+,A+, A+, A+.Go SEE IT. You will love it.

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Anonymous says:

December 1, 2005

What an amazing job Reese and Joaquin did with telling the life story of Johnny Cash. I have never liked Johnny Cashes music but after i saw this movie i finally have respect for him.

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Anonymous says:

November 22, 2005

The number one reason to see "Walk the Line," in my book, is Reese Witherspoon's Oscar winning-quality performance. I'm not saying she will win an Oscar, or even be nominated, in which case the Academy (whatever that is) is even dumber than I thought, but if she does win, she will richly deserve it (even more than the other actress I personally nominate, Charlize Theron, who does a great job in the flawed, sometimes sloppy, but still very powerful film "North Country" that does not flinch from presenting sexual harassment for what it is--a filthy, ugly degradation of humanity, both male and female humanity). I don't know what the real June Carter was like, but Reese turns in a convincing, well-fleshed out portrayal that is commanding, alluring, and mesmerizing--she really fills the screen. That is not the only reason I recommend the movie. The love story between Johnny Cash and June Carter at the heart of the film is a compelling rendering the deep regard these two had for one another, whose deep friendship carried them through some difficult times in their relationship as friends as well as lovers to a happy ending--it's not too often one sees Hollywood base a love story much more on friendship than on sexual attraction (although that, too, was a signficant factor--the sparks do fly) and quite refreshing to see for a change. The music in the film is actually somewhat of a disappointment in that Joaquin Phoenix cannot sing, certainly not like Johnny Cash and only turns in an approximation of Cash's singing style. However, Mr. Phoenix makes up for that with a solid and credible acting performance, especially since he was saddled with the thankless task of portraying Johnny Cash, a man who is truly one of a kind and a true great in the music world and therefore inimitable. Phoenix does the next best thing and gives it the old college try, and a darn good college try (although sometimes I wonder if, in such cases, more than a college try is needed as proven by Jamie Foxx in "Ray," who simply decided he needed to take it to the next level and make us almost believe we were really seeing Ray Charles but it is very rare an actor can do that so I cannot fault Phoenix for putting himself through the paces the way Jamie did). Finnaly, I should not neglect to mention the supporting cast, and their solid performances down to the youngest child actor. All in all, a worthy film that personally left me with Johnny Cash's music singing in my head and images of Reese Witherspoon's riveting performance that I expect will stay with me for the rest of my life and may for my money be among the greatest acting performances I have ever seen.

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