This is the one

Rating: 10/10 (23 May 2006)

I have always been a fan of Johnny Cash, and as far as I'm concerned Joaquin Phoenix *is* Johnny Cash. The voice is uncannily similar, so that you forget you are seeing an actor portray Cash; it seems like the man himself. I never heard anything much by June Carter, but I am prepared to bet Reese Witherspoon's impersonation of her is equally good; it felt authentic, and the whole performance is a fine demonstration of her range as a very good actress, fully deserving an Oscar. They give tremendous performances of the songs and (in Reese Witherspoon's case) the playful onstage banter. Whether it is fair to June Carter to imply that Cash got even more into pills and drugs out of thwarted love for her, I do not know, but Phoenix does a great job of suggesting Cash's mental turmoil, and when she finally accepts his proposal, on stage ... wow! It was good to see fair renditions of Jerry Lee Lewis and a (very) young Elvis Presley as well. In fact, the performances were uniformly good. It may have oversimplified the facts, and Cash's first wife fades out of the picture without it becoming clear when and how they broke up, but overall this was a great picture.