While growing up in the Great Depression era, Johnny Cash takes an interest in music and eventually moves out of his Arkansas town to join the air force in Germany. While there, he buys his first guitar and writes his own music, and proposes to Vivian. When they got married, they settled in Tennessee and with a daughter, he supported the family by being a salesman. He discovers a man who can pursue his dreams and ends up getting a record with the boys. Shortly after that, he was on a short tour, promoting his songs, and meets the already famous and beautiful June Carter. Then as they get on the long-term tours with June, the boys, and Jerry Lee Lewis, they have this unspoken relationship that grows. But when June leaves the tour because of his behavior, he was a drug addict. His marriage was also falling apart, and when he sees June years later at an awards show, he forces June to tour with them again, promising June to support her two kids and herself. While the tour goes on, the relationship between June and John grow more,and his marriage to his first wife ends. June finds out about the drugs, and help him overcome it. True love and care helped John eventually stop the drug usage, and finally proposes to her in front of an audience at a show.
A woman's love, given reluctantly, saves a man from addiction and self-destruction. Traces the life of Johnny Cash from his boyhood, with the loss of a brother and the loss of his father's affection, to 1968 when his outlaw side and his unhappiness give way to the twin triumphs of his concert at Folsom Prison and June Carter's acceptance of his marriage proposal. Along the way there's his first composition, first recording, first marriage, daughters, being smitten with June, divorce, pills and booze, an empty life, and the Carter family's nursing him back to health. June eases Johnny out of a ring of fire.
"Steady like a train, sharp like a razor." - That was how June Carter described Johnny Cash's music in "Walk the Line". Actually, that was exactly how I feel about this movie also. I went into the movie thinking I was going to see the biograhy on Cash's life. Well, I was kind of right, this movie is about how Cash came to realize his music and destiny, but it's also a love story of Johnny and June. The story is very subtle, nothing really dramatic, even when there's a fight going on, the director really played it down. However, doesn't mean the story won't move you. In fact, I don't think I've been touched by a movie like this for a long time.
Reese Witherspoon did such a wonderful job as June Carter. She really showed us how torn she was. She had the worst luck in men, people at the time called her an abomination to the Christian community because of her divorce, yet she still acted tough and cheery, because she still had to raise her daughters. She loved Johnny the moment they met, yet she resisted him for the longest time. First because they were both married to other people, and later because he was a drug addict and she just couldn't risk her life with another disastrous relationship.
And Joaquin Phoenix was amazing also. You can really see the pain in his eyes and his facial expressions, whether it was when he couldn't beat the drug addiction, or when he couldn't bear the disappointment from his father. He probably started loving June when he was 12 listening to her on the radio, but he just didn't know it yet until he met her for the first time. Once he met her, we all know that he's doomed.
Watching the two of them sing on stage was really cool, especially after I found out that Witherspoon and Phoenix really did sing the soundtracks. I never knew the two of them can sing! Sparks fly whenever the two of them are on stage together, and these two's chemistry really made this movie worked.
I also read that Johnny really did propose to June on stage in real life. That just made this love story even more romantic and sweet. It's a true story! :)
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