One of the best portrayals ever of alcoholism

Rating: 9/10 (23 June 2006)

"The darkness was responsible for his work, but also for dragging him down." So said co-writer and Director James Mangold in his commentary on the film biography of country singer legend Johnny Cash. "Walk the Line" is an excellent portrayal of alcoholism and the grand dichotomy largely responsible for the conflicts in the work and lives of Cash, Edgar Allan Poe, Richard Burton, Jim Morrison and countless other remarkable achievers. The portrayal of Cash's father's alcoholism and abusive behaviors is superb as well in this on-screen acknowledgment of the genetic roots of a disease to which he succumbs.
Since the cinema and addicts (the screenplay is based on Cash's autobiography) can't be trusted to accurately report real-life events, there's no way to know whether there was heavy drinking before Cash's popping of amphetamines and barbiturates began. But as soon as it starts, his demeanor dramatically changes, which we see in Cash's facial expressions as portrayed by actor Joaquin Phoenix. He instantly begins illicit one-night stands with fans when on the road, while his wife Vivian stays home with their children. The drunken show of anger when he rips apart his dressing room after a scene with the woman he truly loves, fellow country star June Carter, is a classic by-product of his addiction which, as is true for addicts everywhere, serves as an excuse to pop more pills.
Carter, in an Oscar-winning performance by Reese Witherspoon, is the one person who is willing to draw the line, at least some of the time. In a vow to stop enabling after she sees Johnny and the boys in his band stinking drunk just hours before a performance, Carter says she will no longer be the Dutch boy with the finger in the dam. While she enables by beginning an affair with Cash after her divorce, she finally realizes what must be done and flushes his pharmacy down the toilet. Panicking, he cries that he needs the pillsthey were prescribed. It's a scathing indictment of doctors, who all-too-frequently play pusher.
The view of alcoholism as a "family disease," the mal-effects on spouse and children, becomes apparent as his wife Vivian finally leaves him for good, children in tow. Self-inflicted financial abuse, as he tries to cash a $24,000 check in the 1960s, becomes apparent. Unfortunately, the film leaves to the viewer's imagination any financial victimization of others. (Financial abuse of both self and others by alcoholics is my specialty: I wrote a book on the subject, "Drunks, Drugs & Debits: How to Recognize Addicts and Avoid Financial Abuse.") The informal intervention that apparently inspired in Cash a need to seek sobriety started at Thanksgiving in his new home. Reacting to Cash's indifferent attitude and reckless behaviors, his father Ray (portrayed by Robert Patrick) implied that drug use was at the root of Cash's problems when he commented, "I quit drinkin' a long time ago." Indeed, Ray's attitude had improved, although probably not by as much as if his son wasn't an addict. The look in actor Joaquin Phoenix's eyes was as close to one of, "Maybe I'll try sobriety," as any ever expressed. Do watch how Carter's family protects Cash from his pusher after he has suffered through the pain of withdrawal. (Finally, the one thing they should protect him against!) With the drugs mostly out of his system, he begins to ask questions every addict in early recovery must deal with, including, "What have I done?" When he admits to having "hurt everybody I knowI'm nothing," Carter points out that God "is giving you a chance to make everything right." As is typical of addicts in recovery, he thinks he is fundamentally flawed. Cash's favorite film was "Frankenstein," because it was a story of someone made up of bad parts who tried to do good. "Frankenstein" was written by Mary Shelley, who may also have had the disease of alcoholism. Perpetuating this myth of addiction (myth # 60 in my book, "Alcoholism Myths and Realities: Removing the Stigma of Society's Most Destructive Disease") is the only serious flaw in an otherwise excellent movie. In case you're new to these concepts, the truth is that addicts are almost always fundamentally good people who act badly as a result of a particular biochemical reaction to the drug. My goal (I've authored four books on the subject) is to show how to identify addicts and assist them into recovery, before tragedy happens. June Carter just made it, even if Vivian and others did not.