May 25, 2012

Walk the Line

by Andre Ward | Published September 3, 2007

This day in 2004 marked the last day of shooting on James Mangold’s Walk the Line--a portrait of country icon Johnny Cash featuring an Oscar-nominated performance by Joaquin Phoenix and a winning one for Reese Witherspoon. The two leads trained vocally for 6 months, and their duets onscreen crackle with a raw energy that matches the couple’s up-and-down relationship. Phoenix dips into Barry White range as he channels Cash’s dark baritone, and Witherspoon finds a perfect balance between June’s softer melodies and her woman-scorned growls. Line‘s Folsom Prison concert has been hailed as one of the best musical scenes in cinema history, as Phoenix rips through â€œCocaine Blues,â€ nearly inducing a riot among the impassioned convicts. Some critics found the structure of the movie--star rises after struggling, abuses drugs, redeems himself and finds love--to be a little Ray-like, but the movie stays pretty true to life. With appearances by Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Waylon Jennings, it’s also fun to play “Spot the Rockstar.”

Quotable: â€œI got to tell you, I can’t tell you how many shows we done, but this is the best audience we ever had. I want to thank you for that. You know, standing back there in your shop, catching my breath, I come to admire you even moreâ€¦ I got to tell you - my hat’s off to you now. Cause I ain’t never had to drink this yellow water you got here at Folsom. [smashes the glass] This song’s for your warden!â€--Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash in Walk the Line

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Comment by Julie on 11/19/07 at 7:51 pm: This scene is the definition of riveting. Phoenix plays as though he was born into this black suit, guitar in hand. His eyes say everything and are chilling in that you can’t see an actor anywhere in this film, notably in this scene. He seems literally posessed as a man singing from the bottom of his soul. He may not have lived the real Cash’s life, but you believe every instant that those very large shoes were made for Phoenix to fill.