I was prepared to hate it but ended up loving it.

Rating: 9/10 (30 November 2005)

I've been a Johnny Cash fan since the beginning of his career. I had seen the movie previews on TV and was prepared to hate it because anyone could see that Joaquin Phoenix was no Johnny Cash and Reese Witherspoon did not remind one of June Carter.
I was very pleasantly surprised. Joaquin did his homework. While he doesn't look like Johnny or sing exactly the same or move the same way, he somehow captured the essence. Reese did a very good job of capturing June's behaviors. At times during the movies I felt I was watching Johnny and June instead of two actors. I know it sounds silly, but when John proposed to June and she was taking her time answering, I found myself totally caught up in the moment, urging her to say "yes". That's damn fine acting.