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Moviola > Films > Walk the Line
Walk the Line (12A) 136 mins"Love is a burning thing." Oscar and Bafta nominated Joaquin Phoenix plays country singer Johnny Cash in this acclaimed biopic. Cash's life follows the prescribed pattern for musical legends (the film has many similarities to last year's hit Ray) - a dirt-poor childhood in Arkansas, a family tragedy which deeply scarred him (when his brother died in an accident, his father's comment was "God took the wrong son"), a stint in the army, an unsuccessful first marriage and then, as musical success begins to come, a descent into pills and booze. He is saved by his relationship, and eventual marriage, with June Carter (Reese Witherspoon, Oscar and Bafta Best Actress) a singing star since childhood. The film begins and ends with Cash's legendary concert in Folsom Prison, California in 1968. He had always identified with outsiders and losers: when he does fall foul of the law and spends some time in jail, his father comments shrewdly: "Now you won't have to work so hard to make people think you been to jail." This is a terrific film with a great soundtrack. "There's a warm and generous richness to this biopic . . . you'd need a heart of stone not to love it, and toes of stone not to tap along to the music's driving force." Peter Bradshaw "Joaquin Phoenix delivers one of the most magnetic performances of his career as the Man in Black." James Christopher
Last modified: 20-Jun-2008 |
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