One of the best pictures of all time...

Rating: 10/10 (1 April 2014)

Reviewers notes: 1. The somewhat counter-intuitive idea that you could do a biopic of an iconic singer seems (other members can correct me) to have taken root with the 1978 Buddy Holly film, where Gary Busey did such an outstanding job that (irony) it is generally believed the work will be the only role of his remembered by future film historians; 2. On paper the idea of having Withersoon and Phoenix portray (and mimic) two of the best known voices of their era should not have worked but OMG it did -- Ritherspoon's press interviews emphasized how nervous she was, and how she had given up singing years earlier, but it still worked. If you listen to the "real" sound clip in the closing credits, you can instantly hear major differences, but (pardon me for repeating) it worked anyway; 3. Was Gil Dennis robbed? This was one of the tightest scripts I have ever seen (including the wonderful scene where, in the band car, a bunch of drunken men are considering the certainty they will each end up in Hell, and, out of the front seat, Witherspoon's character innocently asks if she will too, and gets an emphatic, no!, because (quote) "You're beautiful, June" (unquote). My guess is that, since the story was lifted from both an official and an unofficial biography, the award people were nervous about where the books ended and where the script started...? My guess is they messed up, and did not give the writers proper credit; 4. This is not merely a great biopic and simultaneously a great love story (with real sparks on screen) this is a great film. Have seen it 4 times and it gets better each time. 5. Did Witherspoon deserve the Oscar? Absolutely.