Walks a fine line....

Rating: 8/10 (14 January 2006)

Walk the Line: ***.5* (3.5)
'Walk the line' opens in the dull and drab atmosphere outside Folsom Prison. A faint echo of music cuts through the air barely recognizable. We move inside and see the band play while Johnny Cash (Jaoquin Pheonix) runs his fingers along a saw blade. This sets the tone for the rest of the movie as we flash back to Johnny's childhood, and then move forward until we catch up with the beginning.
Pheonix captures perfectly the spirit of Johnny Cash. This should be no surprise as Cash chose Phoenix to play the role in the first place. As a child we hear Johnny listening to the Carters on his radio, quizzing his older brother Jack on which Carter is singing. "Thats June" says Johnny. And, as we all know, Johnny meets June and is immediately smitten with her, if not in love with her. June Carter is played by Reese Witherspoon in what is far and away her best role yet, and possibly ever. That is just how good she is in this film. Phoenix also does some of his best work here, but its no surprise as he is a wonderful actor. Whats is surprising though, is that both Phoenix and Witherspoon sing every song. And they absolutely nailed it. That is part of the mystique of their performances. It is one thing to nail your character, its another to nail their songs. And, boy, do they nail their characters. Last years big music movie was 'Ray' which garnered a lot of attention for Jamie Foxx. Phoenix far and away out does him here. Watching 'Ray' I saw Jamie Foxx playing Ray Charles. In 'Walk the Line' I saw Johnny Cash on film. While both 'Ray' and 'Walk the line' are fairly conventional, 'Line' is definitely the better movie. Walk the Line overcomes its conventionality with spot on performances from Phoenix and Witherspoon. Its a conventional film without seeming so. The concert scenes are fantastic, whether you're a cash fan or not. This movie sweeps you off your feet and into the life of one of the greatest music icons of all time. 'Walk the Line' walks a fine line and never over steps it. This is one of the funnest movies of the year for sure, especially if you love Johnny Cash's music. 8.5/10