Could have been great, but was somewhat lacking...

Rating: 6/10 (13 May 2008)

The biography is well worth watching. Johnny Cash, himself, is a country legend and one of my favorites. In fact, his legend has crossed over into new territory with younger audiences, and this film may help further the legend. Reese Witherspoon does June Carter to a "T" ~ she turned in an excellent, energetic performance, capturing the voice and the spirit of the singer. I wouldn't change a thing about her. Unfortunately, I thought that Joaquin Phoenix missed the boat on his portrayal of Johnny Cash (and that's where strength of performance is needed). He captured Johnny's persona and strength of character, but he failed miserably on the music, I thought. Granted, Johnny's voice and style would be hard to emulate. To me, Phoenix's voice just sounded weak and off-key. This is one instance where dubbing would have been a good thing. This is not a bad movie, though. The story is wonderfully real and contains great material even for someone who doesn't know much about Cash.