Solid biopic of Johnny Cash with a captivating third act

Rating: 7/10 (15 February 2017)

Released in early 2005 and directed by James Mangold, "Walk the Line" is a biopic of Johnny Cash (Joaquin Phoenix): His rise to fame, his travails with alcohol & drugs, his first marriage to Vivian (Ginnifer Goodwin) and his ever-tightening relationship with June Carter (Reese Witherspoon). Robert Patrick (the T-1000 from "Terminator 2") and Shelby Lynne play Johnny's parents.
This is a solid drama that naturally works better for people interested in the inimitable Cash. The first two acts are decent, but nothing great. However, I pleasantly found myself really entering into the story with the third act, which focused on Johnny in his self-made pit of despair and his angel of deliverance, June. I don't have a problem with Phoenix playing the musical icon, except that he was a full half a foot shorter than the towering Cash. Witherspoon is a nice fit for the humble June who was decent-looking, but by no means some hot starlet. In the movie, Vivian (as played by Goodwin) is clearly hotter than Witherspoon. In real-life Vivian was Italian American with an exotic look; she obviously had a splash of African blood running through her veins (nothing wrong with that, of course).
Some criticize the movie's portrayal of Cash & his guys auditioning for Sam Phillips (Dallas Roberts) of Sun Records the same day Johnny worked up the courage to visit the studio in Memphis, hoping to get a recording contract. While they did audition for Phillips and scored a record contract it wasn't the same day and they didn't play "Folsom Prison Blues," but a less incendiary song, "'Hey Porter." However, it is true that, after auditioning with mostly gospel songs, Phillips told Cash that he didn't record gospel music any longer because it wasn't selling, at least not the dispassionate tripe Johnny was trying to sell. It was once rumored that Phillips told Cash to "go home and sin; then come back with a song I can sell" (lol), although in a 2002 interview Johnny denied that he made any kind of statement.
Another problem is the generally negative portrayal of Vivian who, by all accounts, was a good, supportive wife. The problem with their marriage wasn't Vivian, but rather Johnny's increasing addictions and infatuation with Carter.
ADDITIONAL CAST: Waylon Payne appears as Jerry Lee Lewis, Tyler Hilton as Elvis and Shooter Jennings as Waylon Jennings.
The film runs 136 minutes (extended cut 153 minutes) and was shot in Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas and California.
GRADE: B