FMS-Blog : The Wildly Whimsical, Mostly Musical WebLog
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Walk the Line
I've just been watching the movie Walk the Line again, for the first time since it was released in the cinemas last year and I've got to say that I'm even more impressed having seen it for a second time. I walked away from the movie theater after my first viewing in awe at the performances given by both lead actors, Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon; stunned by how well the pair sang and how they gelled together on stage.
Phoenix clearly has a great voice and the uncanny ability to sing with both the style and timbre that made Johnny Cash so famous in his time - both Phoenix and Witherspoon are themselves heard throughout the movie and the only original Cash / Carter recording used for this film can be heard when the credits role. It's not surprising then that this relatively unknown actor was chosen for the part, not least because of his 'rugged' look that seemed to suit the part of the 'young' Johnny ideally. But, Witherspoon's outstanding talent was most surprising - prior to the release of this picture I only knew her for her part in the Legally Blonde series of bimbo-teen movies (although, she had appeared in a number of other big productions including a couple of episodes of Friends and King of the Hill, as well as playing Cecily in The Importance of Being Ernest) and here she is - a wonderful acting talent backed up by the most amazing vocal impression of June Carter. Truly wonderful to watch these two actors working together: if there was no chemistry between them then they pulled off a quite stunning performance because the desperation in the eyes of Phoenix as Witherspoon turns down his marriage proposals time after time is quite remarkable. First class stuff.
I've been a fan of Johnny Cash's music for a few years now and I certainly knew his most popular repertoire before this movie was released - hell, I see this guy as a musical role model, if only for the bare, painful honesty that he managed to bring through the relatively simple songs he sang - but the film was still something of an eye-opener to me. For a start, I didn't realise that the root of many of Cash's problems lay in the relationship he had with his father, particularly after the death of Johnny's big brother (although, Freud could probably have told us this without watching the movie!) I also found it quite moving how the Carter family brought him back from the brink of drug and alcohol abuse, despite their collective disapproval - the picture suggests that they did much more for Johnny than his own family ever bothered to. Quite inspiring stuff - I'd recommend this movie to anyone with an interest in either film or music, and while you're at it, you better pick up some of the Cash CD's - there really are some wonderful songs in there! :)
Phoenix clearly has a great voice and the uncanny ability to sing with both the style and timbre that made Johnny Cash so famous in his time - both Phoenix and Witherspoon are themselves heard throughout the movie and the only original Cash / Carter recording used for this film can be heard when the credits role. It's not surprising then that this relatively unknown actor was chosen for the part, not least because of his 'rugged' look that seemed to suit the part of the 'young' Johnny ideally. But, Witherspoon's outstanding talent was most surprising - prior to the release of this picture I only knew her for her part in the Legally Blonde series of bimbo-teen movies (although, she had appeared in a number of other big productions including a couple of episodes of Friends and King of the Hill, as well as playing Cecily in The Importance of Being Ernest) and here she is - a wonderful acting talent backed up by the most amazing vocal impression of June Carter. Truly wonderful to watch these two actors working together: if there was no chemistry between them then they pulled off a quite stunning performance because the desperation in the eyes of Phoenix as Witherspoon turns down his marriage proposals time after time is quite remarkable. First class stuff.
I've been a fan of Johnny Cash's music for a few years now and I certainly knew his most popular repertoire before this movie was released - hell, I see this guy as a musical role model, if only for the bare, painful honesty that he managed to bring through the relatively simple songs he sang - but the film was still something of an eye-opener to me. For a start, I didn't realise that the root of many of Cash's problems lay in the relationship he had with his father, particularly after the death of Johnny's big brother (although, Freud could probably have told us this without watching the movie!) I also found it quite moving how the Carter family brought him back from the brink of drug and alcohol abuse, despite their collective disapproval - the picture suggests that they did much more for Johnny than his own family ever bothered to. Quite inspiring stuff - I'd recommend this movie to anyone with an interest in either film or music, and while you're at it, you better pick up some of the Cash CD's - there really are some wonderful songs in there! :)
