Walk the Line (PG-13)
Mike:
Scott:
Scott: Tonight we are reviewing Walk the Line
. The story of how Johnny Cash went from a poor farm in Arkansas to the big city of Memphis and made millions of fans along the way with his music.
What did you think, Mike?
Mike: I liked it, but I wasn't blown away. After the trailers I was expecting more. I will say the movie reminded me of Ray, but I think Ray was better done. How about you?
Scott: Funny you say that. I liked it more than Ray.
Mike: Interesting. Why do you say that?
Scott: I was impressed with the movie, and even more so of the man. I didn't know a lot about Cash, and I came out with a healthy respect for him There was more acting in this movie than in Ray. Ray seemed more about moving from one hit to another, and showcasing the music more than the man
Mike: I don't agree. I think that the storytelling was more creative in Ray. This movie was a very straightforward biography of Johnny Cash. Unfortunately I think that led to more slow parts.
Scott: Yes, there were some slow parts. But in life there are slow parts. In a historical movie I like that. In action-not so much.
Mike: Yeah, but just compare the way the stories are told and you will see what I mean.
I think that both Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash and Reese Witherspoon as June Carter were excellent.
Scott: Apparently, they were both picked by their real life counterparts to play those characters
Mike: The funny thing is they are both way more attractive than their real life counterparts.
Scott: I really liked Phoenix in this movie. His genes are really starting to show with this role.
Mike: Very Johnny Cash, without really looking or sounding exactly like him. He seemed to capture the essence of what you have seen of the real Johnny Cash.
Scott: He was the definition of cool in this movie. 'Hello, I'm Johnny Cash' - that was too cool.
Mike: My favorite scenes are the early days of his career. Auditioning for THE Sam Phillips of Sun records and going on the road with the greats, before they were greats. He was traveling with Jerry Lee Lewis, Waylon Jennings, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison and even Elvis.
Scott: Waylon Jennings role was played by his son, Shooter Jennings. And Jerry Lee Lewis is played by Waylon Payne, whose Godfather is ... Waylon Jennings.
Mike: It was a different world where you could make a record for $4 and then get it played on the radio, tour and eventually become internationally famous. You can't do that anymore.
Scott: I liked that part too. Old time album pressing and hitting it big. The pictures on the wall of Sun Records was a who's who of that era in music.
Mike: You have to be impressed when you watch someone say that they are going to be famous and then they just go and do it against all odds.
Scott: And the tour was the same way. All of the big names would tour together. Something that isn't imaginable today.
Mike: Can you imagine being in the audience to see one of those shows? Those people probably had no idea what a big deal it was until they looked back on it.
Scott: It's like buying a original Star Wars toy, unopened at a yard sale... priceless
Mike: It's like seeing the Beatles at the Cavern club or in a strip club in Germany, before they became THE BEATLES.
Scott: Witherspoon really showed her stuff as well. This was her biggest role in a movie that wasn't a romantic or comedy movie. And she did really well. She has a pretty good singing voice. That surprised me.
Mike: Her character was very attractive and sympathetic. The amazing thing was that back at the time Johnny and the others started, June Carter was the most famous.
Scott: The movie shows a very young Johnny listening to her sing on the radio with her family. He had a fascination with her for what seemed like his whole life
Mike: Can you imagine what it would be like to be on tour with someone you had been a fan of most of your life? It must be surreal, but they made it seem like, "hey what's up?'-no big deal. It would be hard not to make a fool of yourself.
I thought I knew about Johnny Cash. I certainly know his music, but I found that I learned a lot about him. I had the mistaken impression, like many people probably do, that Cash had been to prison like in his song Folsom Prison Blues.
Scott: Apparently, he had a pretty big following with people in prison. His Live from Folsom Prison was one of the best selling albums of it's time
Mike: He did go to jail after getting busted for drugs, but I don't think he spent time in a penitentiary.
Scott: Like I said earlier, the movie wasn't focused on music, which maybe it should have been in some places. For the most part, it was about how Johnny moved through life, and about his love for June
Mike: The movie is actually more of a love story than anything else.
Scott: The music the movie covered was mostly in the movie because it served to advance the relationship between the two than because the songs were hits.
Mike: The movie may not be focused on the music, but it does give you a taste of many of his hits as you saw him progress through his career from novice to superstar.
Scott: I got the impression from the movie that he was bigger than Elvis for a time.
Mike: If not, then definitely an equal.
He is certainly a prime Behind the Music candidate. He follows the rags to riches, then out of the spotlight (mainly because of drugs) and then reborn again to another generation of fans. Doesn't that sound like every VH1 Behind the Music you've ever seen?
Scott: I don't watch them any more, just tune into the last 5 minutes to see what really happened to people.
Mike: Exactly, because you are hip to the formula. It's amazing how many times that story has happened in the music business.
Scott: Hey kids, "Say NO to Drugs!"
Mike: I also like that there is some humor in the picture. When they are getting ready to perform at the prison, the warden says," Don't do anything to remind the inmates they are in prison". And Johnny says, "Why, do you think there is a chance they forgot?" I love that line!
Scott: So what do you rate this?
Mike: I give the movie 4 stars overall and 3 stars as a music biography.
And you?
Scott: I give it a 4.5 overall and a 5 for music biography. I couldn't ask for more from a music biography
Mike: Well, I could.
Scott: The Man in Black is back, and we don't mean Zorro!
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