Walk the Line (2005)

Featured Audience Ratings

• familiar s

  
  Musicals are not my cup of tea, but I decided to give it a go for it's based on real life. As expected, the movie turned out to be a disappointment. Thanks to my holy ignorance, I'd not heard of the protagonist ever before, but his story seemed familiar. It was like watching… More
  Musicals are not my cup of tea, but I decided to give it a go for it's based on real life. As expected, the movie turned out to be a disappointment. Thanks to my holy ignorance, I'd not heard of the protagonist ever before, but his story seemed familiar. It was like watching a modern version of Devdas. Only that this one has a happy ending. [I grant you the permission to differ for now.] Having said all that, it's still watchable with one finger on the fast-forward button.

• Eric A

  
  Knew nothing about Johnny Cash going into this movie, and left feeling like i've been a fan all my life. Strong movie and definitely worth watching.

• Bethany M

  
  Reese Witherspoon makes an excellent June Carter!

• Coxxie M

  
  I hate to say that Reese Witherspoon is not in this movie for nearly as long as you think she is. so mash your fucking face shut please. "WRONNNG KID DIED!"

• Conner R

  
  The only thing wrong with Walk The Line is that it's too short, which isn't really a bad thing in the end. It's more of a compliment that I wanted to see a few more hours of Johnny Cash's life, it's just so interesting and beautiful. He's someone with… More
  The only thing wrong with Walk The Line is that it's too short, which isn't really a bad thing in the end. It's more of a compliment that I wanted to see a few more hours of Johnny Cash's life, it's just so interesting and beautiful. He's someone with such a huge legacy and full life, that I guess it's sort of impossible to make a film adaption that's truly complete. Joaquin Phoenix gives such a great performance that it's hard to tell the difference. Not only does he look and sound like him almost exactly, but he has the charisma of him too. Most music biopics have some decent cover songs, but in some cases, the delivery of the songs in this are many times better to me than their original counterparts (not that I mean any disrespect). I think it's great the way they achieved the time periods without having to overdo everything. What this gets down right is the soul and passion behind the music, so in that respect it's pretty perfect.

• Brad W

  
  A work of art, it perfectly details the life of Johnny Cash, but doesn't bring us to where his stories that happened after he got off drugs.

• Spencer S

  
  Biopics, however harrowing and heartfelt, are not always made with the greatest of care. Walk the Line plagues us with Cash's unruly nature, his addiction, his romancing of June Carter, which is both tumultuous and hurts to watch. Unlike many films I have seen covering this sort… More
  Biopics, however harrowing and heartfelt, are not always made with the greatest of care. Walk the Line plagues us with Cash's unruly nature, his addiction, his romancing of June Carter, which is both tumultuous and hurts to watch. Unlike many films I have seen covering this sort of subject, there is a fair amount of decency in Phoenix's performance and the truthfulness of the plot, unlike many exploitative films available.

• Jeff "

  
  A phenomenal biopic on the life of famed musician Johnny Cash. A very well crafted film from James Mangold, Walk The Line tells the story of Johnny Cash rise to fame from his childhood to his marriage to June Carter. Walk The Line is a near flawless film that will surely become a… More
  A phenomenal biopic on the life of famed musician Johnny Cash. A very well crafted film from James Mangold, Walk The Line tells the story of Johnny Cash rise to fame from his childhood to his marriage to June Carter. Walk The Line is a near flawless film that will surely become a classic over time. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon give astounding performances and they have amazing chemistry on screen. One thing thats worth mentioning is that they actually sing the songs originally sung by June Carter and Johnny Cash, and they pull it off amazingly well. Not since Val Kilmer's performance as Jim Morrison in The Doors has an actor or actress been able to deliver such an intense performance of a musician. Both performances are amazing and are some of the best ever delivered. As far as Biopics are concerned, there is nothing really new here to be had, it follows practically the same path as many other biopics of musicians. But the thing that separates this film over the standard biopics is the performances of Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. They deliver simply flawless performances. The film is of course sad, dramatic and at times funny, and the soundtrack is excellent. Viewing this film opened by mind to Johnny Cash, and I therefore respect him more as a musician. I am a metalhead, and I can honestly say that Johnny Cash is one of the most impressive and talented musicians that ever lived. Walk The Line introduced me to Cash's music, and I was very impressed with the film and the music. Walk The Line may very well introduce you to Cash's life, but also it has the power to introduce to his brand of bluegrass, Blues and Country style of music. Walk The Line is a superbly crafted biopic, one of the best that I have ever viewed and after you watch it, you'll realize why this is a top notch film. Strong performances and a great soundtrack with terrific directing make Walk The Line a superb work of drama about one of the greatest musicians to ever grace the stage.

• Steven C

  
  James Mangold's "Walk the Line" is pretty damn near perfect if you ask me. Sure, it hits all the notes that a musician biopic should hit, but it's all done so well that you won't even care. The story is a wonderful one, full of drama, romance, music, history… More
  James Mangold's "Walk the Line" is pretty damn near perfect if you ask me. Sure, it hits all the notes that a musician biopic should hit, but it's all done so well that you won't even care. The story is a wonderful one, full of drama, romance, music, history and lovely life lessons. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon (whom took home the Best Actress Oscar) deliver in spades and Mangold's writing and direction is detailed, beautiful and resonant. "Walk the Line" is the creme of the crop of filmmaking.

• KJ P

  
  Walk the Line is a brilliant telling of this tale and shall never be forgotten. Joaquin Phoenix's performance is unbearably perefct, and the conclusion made me tear up. This film is amazing, even though there are a few minor mess ups.

• Martin S

  
  It's a interesting story. Even thought you'r not his biggest fan. And I think that if Reese Witherspoon won an Oscar...then Joaquin Phoenix should get one to.

• Jameson W

  
  Reese Witherspoon and Joaquin Phoenix are fantastic!

• Richard C

  
  B

• Jens S

  
  This biopic first tells the story of Johnny Cash's walk to success and then concentrates on his difficult relationship with his later wife June Carter, both being very convincingly portrayed by Phoenix, respectively Witherspoon. The movie flows wonderfully, from his childhood,… More
  This biopic first tells the story of Johnny Cash's walk to success and then concentrates on his difficult relationship with his later wife June Carter, both being very convincingly portrayed by Phoenix, respectively Witherspoon. The movie flows wonderfully, from his childhood, over the first steps in show business, rise to stardom and all personal problems all that entails, spiked with convincingly real and energetic musical performances by the two leading roles. The result is one of the most entertaining and convincing musician biography movies, doing justice to one of the great musicians of the last century and beyond.

• Jeremy S

  
  Two Thumbs Up For Phoenix And Witherspoon. With outstanding lead performances, a gripping love story of redemption and great music it is a heart-capturing film. Oscar bound performance by Reese Witherspoon a highlight of her career.

• Bruce B

  
  Joaquin Phoenix does his best at Johnny Cash, Movie came out shortly after Johnny's death and did well at the time. This would be for the older crowd who remembers Johnny cash, I seen it at the time in the theater, Picked up the DVD at a pawn shop, not really a movie I would pull… More
  Joaquin Phoenix does his best at Johnny Cash, Movie came out shortly after Johnny's death and did well at the time. This would be for the older crowd who remembers Johnny cash, I seen it at the time in the theater, Picked up the DVD at a pawn shop, not really a movie I would pull out for company. How much of it is actual, I have no idea, but like most men who are successful stands an even more successful women. 3 1/2 stars

• Anthony L

  
  I thought Joaquin Phoenix was brilliant and I liked the way the story was based on Cash's relationship with June Carter. As a Johnny Cash fan I thought there was possibly more it could have told us about the man and the typical Biography clichés are rife but on the whole, great… More
  I thought Joaquin Phoenix was brilliant and I liked the way the story was based on Cash's relationship with June Carter. As a Johnny Cash fan I thought there was possibly more it could have told us about the man and the typical Biography clichés are rife but on the whole, great film!

• David S

  
  When watching any biopic, one fact should remain with the viewer: the events on screen can often be combinations/alterations of real life occurrences, often heightened for drama (as much as I love Ed Wood, I acknowledge things like Tor Johnson's kids being older than they were at… More
  When watching any biopic, one fact should remain with the viewer: the events on screen can often be combinations/alterations of real life occurrences, often heightened for drama (as much as I love Ed Wood, I acknowledge things like Tor Johnson's kids being older than they were at the premiere of Plan 9 From Outer Space and facts of that nature). With that in mind, the true appeal comes from exploring people in their isolated moments and their sociability. It's about getting into their heads and trying to to capture their moods. Not knowing much about Johnny Cash, I didn't quite know what to expect. Happily enough, I was treated to an interesting tale of living the high life, almost burning out and gaining another chance. It was said somewhere that Johnny himself wanted Joaquin Phoenix to portray him on the big screen and you can see why. He's able to step right into Johnny's shoes and show us how tortured he felt, partly about the accidental death of his brother (which put a much greater strain on the relationship with his father, convinced his older brother was the "good one"), partly about his feelings for fellow musician June Carter (Reese Witherspoon, more on her later). His singing voice is top-notch and he really does wonders for such classics like I Walk The Line, Folsom Prison Blues and Jackson (coincidentally, my favourite Johnny Cash song). He balances the anguish of Johnny's personal life by making his stage presence the essence of confidence. All it takes is to dress in black and just announce, simply: "Hello. I'm Johnny Cash". One of my absolute favourite scenes in the movie is his audition in the first act. He's doing a gospel song and it's clear that he's rather be singing something with more meaning to him. So the man he's auditioning for says he should sing whatever he wants. He breaks out with one of the songs he's written, Folsom Prison Blues, and that's what impresses the man (incidentally, Folsom Prison Blues has one of the greatest lines I've ever heard in a song with "I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die"). Now onto Reese Witherspoon, playing June Carter. Throughout the movie, June acts as John's anchor, his salvation. When he gets addicted to drugs and spirals downwards, it is June's concerns and action that get him to clean up his act. The song Ring Of Fire represents how June felt towards Johnny and it's nice to know how much of a positive influence June Carter was. Seeing as how she chose Reese to play her, it's clear both Cashes were spot on in their choices. Reese is feisty, confident and has a knockout set of pipes. In my opinion, this is her best role to date (and on a more trivial note, I propose she keep her hairstyle and colour the same as shown here. Works for her, it really does). I'm glad I watched this movie, I really am. I heard wonderful songs I had never heard before and classics through new vocals (I may be hung, drawn and quartered for this but I think Phoenix's and Witherspoon's rendition of Jackson edges out over the original by a little). John and June were two fascinating people and I'm glad to have seen this look into their lives.

• Mike S

  
  Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon give the performance of their lives in this incredibly well-acted and gripping biopic, about the life and career of the legendary Johnny Cash. Altough I've never been a particular fan of his music, this movie was still a joy to watch, and had… More
  Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon give the performance of their lives in this incredibly well-acted and gripping biopic, about the life and career of the legendary Johnny Cash. Altough I've never been a particular fan of his music, this movie was still a joy to watch, and had me glued to the seat all the way through. If you enjoy films like <i>Ray</i> and <i>Amadeus</i>, you're guaranteed to be enthralled by this one as well.

• Arash X

  
  I expected much more & an oscar for Witherspoon's perf? huh...

Read all 20 featured audience ratings