Walk The Line on DVD (2005)

Walk the Line

SAI81 from Tonbridge [Highly rated reviewer] , 05/02/2006

This biopic of Johnny Cash (Phoenix) wisely decides not to try and tell the whole story of his life but instead focuses on 13 years between his first hit and his legendary performance in Folsom prison. More important than his career though is Cash's relationship with June Carter (Witherspoon) who eventually became his wife. The music biopic is a popular form and it's easy to see why. The lives of musicians are often packed with incident and more than a little scandal and, of course, there's a built in brilliant soundtrack. Walk the Line is among the best musical biopics. Finding people to play musicians is often difficult; do you go for someone who looks a lot like the person they are playing or do you find somebody to really do the performance and the music justice? Thankfully director James Mangold has taken the second approach. As Cash Joaquin Phoenix isn't an especially great physical fit but his performance is one of such conviction that you never doubt it. As soon as Cash starts performing the other remarkable facet of Phoenix's performance becomes clear. He plays and sings every note himself and you'd never know that, vocally at least, that he's not miming to the real Cash. Where it tells is in the energy of the music, liberally peppered through the film, particularly the first half as you can see a group of people enjoying the the experience of playing music and feel the connection between the actor and the vocals. Offstage too Phoenix is great turning in an impressively layered performance which doesn't gloss over the many flaws in Cash's character. If anything Reese Witherspoon is even better as June Carter. I've long been a fan of Reese Witherspoon as far back as Man in the Moon, Freeway and Election she was turning in performances that belied her tender years (she's still not yet 30) but that actress, so willing to take risks, seemed to have vanished in the last five years as Witherspoon went from one shonky rom com to another. It's an utter joy to see her on such storming form as she is here. Like Phoenix all the music June performs in the film comes from Witherspoon and her voice (while I can't attest to how like Carter it sounds) is clear, pretty and a pleasure to listen to. In the stage sequences she's got a bouncy energy that makes the already catchy songs even more infectious. However it's in the quieter moments that she most impresses. An early scene where she has coffee with Phoenix is a notable highlight but best is her ability to turn, utterly convincingly, on a dime from June's private to her public face. There's real chemistry between the leads and because of that you believe the romance, you understand when Cash tears a sink off the wall in frustration when Carter rejects him and you root for the romance. If there are criticsms to be made then it can be said that the supporting cast (an excellent Ginnfer Goodwin as Cash's first wife aside) do get a little lost in the mix, despite fine performances, simply because the focus is so strongly on Cash and Carter and Phoenix and Witherspoon are so very good. It also sags just a little in the middle when Cash's drug addiction, rather than his music, is chronicled but Mangold resists the temptation to become preachy or to dwell too long on this section of the story, knowing that the music and the relationship are the engines powering his film. A fine film it is too, one which deserves to win both the acting Oscars it is nominated for and to take pride of place in any film fans biopic collection.

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Walk The Line - You won't Regret it.

KhnemibreAmasis from London , 28/02/2006

Walk the Line is a movie about American legend singer/songwriter's career at its peak and at its lows and his relationship with June Carter. But it's not all about Johnny Cash, it's about American society and musics influence at the time. At the core of this movie is a genuine love of Johnny Cash's music and a feeling of respect for him, so if you like Johnny Cash then this is the film for you. I didn't know much about Johnny Cash at all before i saw it and i had heard relatively little of Cash but that's no longer the case. Whether you like Johnny Cash or not this movie has all the elements any movie should have, humour, a strong narrative and a beautiful mise en scene of 50's - 70's America. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon seem as though they were born to play those roles, Reese's voice is beautiful and Joaquin, who sounds remarkably like Cash, sounds like he's having a good time playing those songs. A film that will have you singing along, crying and laughing. It's the kind of film you could watch over and over again...addictive!

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What a movie!

A customer from Ascot, England , 13/02/2006

Before I went to see this movie, I was not expecting much due to hype. However, I was so wrong. Five minutes into it, I was hooked!

The characters are so beautifully played and the story is so engrossing, I didn't want it to end. Joaquin Phoenix makes an excellent Johnny Cash, even getting his distinctive voice down to a t and Reese Witherspoon excels as June Carter and the chemistry between the two works perfectly. Perhaps the only fault is Tyler Hilton's unconvincing portrayal of Elvis, but that really is nitpicking. The film is honest yet thoroughly entertaining, romantic without being too sappy, very moving and ultimately suprisingly uplifting. This really is a stunning piece of cinema. If only all biopics were this good!

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All forumla, no soul

Paul Watson from Uxbridge, England , 23/09/2006

The exciting and unpredictable life of the young Jonny Cash is rendered here into a dull and formulaic bio-pic as only Hollywood can make them.

The acting, much praised at he time of the film’s release, is solid, but the cast, like the audience, are never challenged by this material. Almost every scene is predictable and although a few (such as the audition scene) manage to generate some emotional charge, the characters are never much more than caricatures, and the flow of the story proceeds exactly as it has in almost every other average music bio-pic before it. With such pedestrian screenplay and direction to contend with, it is little wonder that the best efforts of the cast come to so little.

The music, of course, is great – but that’s pretty much a given. Beyond that, the film has little to offer either those wanting to see a good movie or those wanting to learn about Johnny Cash. Better to listen to “Live at San Quentin” – the complete release, with all the tracks and Johnny’s between-song banter, will entertain and educate anyone far better than this middle-of-the road plodder of a film that is the very antithesis of everything that Johnny’s life and music represent to so many of his fans.

It is a great shame that this film has been so successful, for it serves to confirm the continued bank-ability of these turgid movies. But perhaps the greater shame is that, for many people, this shallow and emotionless film might be all they ever experience of this wild and mercurial artist.

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modern classic

nonnascondiglio from Portsmouth , 12/08/2008

brilliant film, both lead actors play the role with what seams real passion and there singing really makes them stand apart within there role.

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Enjoyable

A customer from Telford , 19/08/2008

After finally getting around to watching this film, which due to interuptions I watched in three parts! Aside from that I really enjoyed the film. The acting was excellent and the music was fantastic. A very sad story in places, with plenty of uplifting moments. I am not a big fan of Johnny Cash, nor do I know much about his life, so this was not the usual film I would watch. I would say that if you are not into biographical films then you could perhaps give this a miss as I'm sure a lot of people may find this film far too slow and maybe a tad boring. I enjoyed it although it was slow in places and not quite my cup of tea which is why I only gave it 3 stars.

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