"Because you're mine I walk the line."

When we started to write this country blog, we thought „Oh, we totally must say a lot about Johnny Cash!” Well, the headline clearly shows our admiration for him, but now it’s time for explanation. Why is he one of the few country artists that are listened both by country fans and country haters? Is it only about his wonderful music? Or also about his inspiring life and dark personality? The best answer for those who aren’t familiar with Cash may be the movie that made new generation of teenagers (including me) fascinated with Johnny. I’m talking of course about “Walk the Line.”

In 2006 I read about this movie in papers. It got wonderful reviews and I am a sucker for musicals. Plus, I remembered Joaquin Phoenix as a crazy Caesar from “Gladiator.” (And who didn’t? Come. On.)

The only problem was that every review stated it’s about a country musician. “Country? Oh, nooo…” But finally I decided to stand the supposed noise and enjoy the movie on the big screen.

When I left the cinema, I was a fan. The music was astonishingly great, more like rockabilly and rock and roll than stereotypical country. And as I really REALLY love rock and roll, I realized that not all country must suck – like every genre it has many variations. Plus, country has the Man in Black, also known as Mr. Johnny Cash.

Look, even posters for this movie are amazing! Some of the best movie posters from the 2000s in my opinion. (One of them even hangs in my room. Well, anyway…)

I don’t want to spoil the movie, so I’m not going to tell you the whole plot. I just want to sincerely recommend it to you. Yes, it has elements of a standard Hollywood biopic (rise to fame, problems, fall, rebirth) and a standard Hollywood love story. It’s not a masterpiece. But I love it. The director James Mangold seems to create such movies, maybe not eminent, but loved by the public –“Girl, Interrupted,” “Identity,” “Kate & Leopold,” and “Cop Land” being the examples.

In fact the whole crew did the fantastic job. The costumes are just right from the times they are supposed to be and make us believe that we see real people, instead of performers in old-fashioned clothes.

But the real strength of “Walk the Line” are two leading actors. In my opinion Joaquin Phoenix should won the Oscar, as Reese Witherspoon did.  Their performances are equally great. The chemistry between Johnny Cash and June Carter, their fights and their love, all is believable and engaging. What is more – THEY PERFORMED ALL OF THE SONGS THEMSELVES, without being dubbed. They also learned to play their instruments (guitar and auto-harp, respectively) from scratch. (quoting IMDb). What can be more amazing than performing successively songs of the legends?

Check these songs out. Don’t compare, enjoy the music!

Johnny Cash - I Walk the Line
Joaquin Phoenix - I Walk The Line

Johnny Cash - Get Rythm
Joaquin Phoenix - Get Rhythm

June Carter - Juke Box Blues
Reese Witherspoon - Juke Box Blues

Johnny and June Carter - It Ain't Me, Babe
Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon - It Ain't Me Babe

All in all, Cash as depicted by Phoenix is a contradictory man. A strong man with troubled past and weaknesses. A simple man with traditional Christian background and rebellious rock star life style. A man who fails, falls, and destroys those who love him, but who can also give a hand to those of whom the world forgot (the prisoners!). A self-taught music genius and a suffering son. A lover and a traitor. A charismatic rebel and a child afraid of his father. Yet one gets to admire him, despite all the mistakes he made. Or maybe because of them? He is a believer, but not a saint. As Cash once said himself: “There is a spiritual side to me that goes real deep, but I confess right up front that I'm the biggest sinner of them all” (The man comes around XX). I think that the movie succeeded in showing his many sides.

However, if you are one of those people who ask questions like “Was it really that way…?” and “What really happened…?,” check this website. It has a lot of information about the realism of this adaptation. Warning: it contains SPOILERS, so I recommend reading it after watching the film. If you want even more, IMDb Trivia is also a great source.     

To conclude, “Walk the Line” gets 9/10 grade from me. Watch it to begin the journey through the Cash universe (55 studio albums, 6 live albums, and 155 singles are waiting for you!).