Rating: 3.5 / 5
The boy Johnny (Joaquin Phoenix) grows up in poor conditions with his family on a farm. After a tragic accident, his brother Jack (Lucas Till) dies and Johnny is harassed again and again by his father (Robert Patrick). Years later, Johnny is now a country musician whose big break is just around the corner. Unfortunately, his drug problems and his desire for the beautiful June Carter (Reese Witherspoon) keep growing. That and the family through his first wife Vivian Liberto (Ginnifer Goodwin) make the superstar to create.
After having made it to films like Straight Outto Compton, Bohemian Rhapsody, Rocketman or Judy has given a surprising number of musicians’ biographies, it was time to devote himself to a film that is a bit older. Also with regard to the fact that the great Joaquin Phoenix for this inhuman work Joker got his Oscar, was a decisive reason for me to give him another chance.
But while in the course of this criticism I would be expected to go into the content of the film, I have to admit at this point that there really is nothing to say about this film.
Well, that’s not entirely correct. Because there are some aspects that need to be discussed, but these are not earth-shattering or revolutionary. Because Walk the Line namely, exactly the same movies as the examples above. Is it crazy? You inevitably have doubts. So either all musicians somehow led the same life, or these oh-so-real-life films are about as real as elves. Now one could argue that that is not a problem and that a film can take artistic liberties. And yes, that’s true. Unfortunately, in view of the fact that these films are really all the same, it is astonishingly tiring, especially since Hollywood has announced that it will start with a musician-biopic offensive.
After all, you can trust James Mangold’s craft by staging his film well, as usual. Although it has a few lengths in the middle, it is entertaining over long distances. Even if you should talk about the role of fathers in Hollywood – because this protagonist also has a father complex (like countless heroes before him) – the film is in itself a success. I see what one or the other reproaches as a nice change. Cash’s entire career is not shown, only the beginning.
It’s not masterful, but okay. And when it comes to acting, too, the film does a good job. Both Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon play their characters well. But not anymore. The press praised the film for its music and the fact that the actors sing all the songs themselves. Well, imitating the originals may be a big challenge. However, imitations are and play two completely different things. Hollywood likes to forget that, but it’s just a side note at this point. No, what is really annoying then is the résumé. Because this fact doesn’t add anything to a film at first. If it’s done well, it’s well done. But it doesn’t make the movie any better either.
It remains questionable whether one can even use an objective standard to discuss which biopic one likes and which one does not. In the course of the musician’s biographies, however, it is above all the genre that is decisive. So some people can start less with pop and pop-rock, but more with rap. For my part, I hardly know anything about country. And even after seeing the film, I tend to have the feeling that it is very shallow, but well-made music. And ultimately that’s the crux of the whole film for me too. The music works for me. Not so much that I would become a passionate fan now, but also not as annoying as Elton John or Queen.
It all comes in Walk the Line then together to a really solid film, the accessibility of which actually made it a little better for me than its genre colleagues. The typical cornerstones are worked through, although the content of the film is less of a goal to report the big picture and therefore works better.
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