Walk the Line :: Education by Design Store

Editorial Review
This is not a review about Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon's hair. However--as any self-respecting fan knows--in country music, after proving you can pluck a guitar and carry a tune, the power of the right hairstyle is not to be underestimated. Johnny Cash, in fact, was famously vain about his locks--perhaps one of the few things he was vain about--and many a guitar store employee can attest to the fact that when the Man in Black came in to buy his special brand of guitar pick, his hair was dyed a jet black more often seen on a boy of 20 than a man of 60. In any case, Phoenix and Witherspoon's performances as Johnny and June Carter Cash succeed more in the style and hair department than in their musicality. Phoenix fares better than his co-star in reinventing the Cash mystique, and his sweet, almost earnest interpretation of "Get Rhythm" is as charming as it is honest. Unfortunately, the powerful song "Ring of Fire" is flat and wholly without the narrative pull it had when Cash sang it. And Witherspoon is simply not up to the warbling task she's faced with in singing as June Carter Cash. (To be fair, it's hard to know who would be, but the estimable Loretta Lynn or Tift Merritt would have had better luck). Carter Cash's honeyed gift with melody, and the largeness of her voice, honed over decades in live performance, is hard to replicate for even a seasoned singer, and predictably, Witherspoon falls short of the mark. It's certainly seductive to imagine that playing a figure as compelling as Johnny or June would allow an actor to channel the soul and some of the talent of the artist, but the closest this record comes is in "Cry, Cry, Cry," where Phoenix's gravelly voice offers the same sustained thrill that made Johnny Cash irresistible--to June and his fans. --Megan Halverson
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Customer Reviews

A Total Find!!

2008-03-03
As close to Johnny as you can get. Some of the songs actually sound better sung by Jacquin than Johnny. Loved the film loved the CD even more!!

Dressed In Black In the Ring of Fire!!

2008-01-28
What a Great sound track to go with a Great movie. Phoenix and Witherspoon did fantastic jobs duplicating the voices of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. This one is headed for the history books. If you don't own this one, you need to buy it now, if not to just add to your music collection. Just Do It!

Before Time Runs Out.

Enjoyable

2008-01-07
I've enjoyed this cd. I found the movie inspiring, so listening to the soundtrack recalls the film. Other reviews comment on how far short Phoenix & Witherspoon fall from Cash & Carter, and while this is very clear on the cd, I bought it because of my attachment to the movie. The music is lively, and allows me to engage a genre of music I normally wouldn't choose.

Walk the line

2007-11-06
I have to admit, I never saw the film WALK THE LINE, the story of Johnny Cash and his wife June Carter Cash. I checked out the soundtrack recently when I had the opportunity to. I wanted to hear how Joaquin Phoenix did as a singer on Johnny Cash's music. Much to my surprise and delight, I thought Joaquin did a wonderful job. Although the intentions were never to try to imitate Johnny and June's vocals, both Joaquin and Reese Witherspoon captured the essence of the two late singers both vocally and spiritually. I thought I was listening to Johnny Cash when Joaquin was singing. I really loved listening to him sing "Ring of Fire" (my all time favorite Johnny Cash song). I really wasn't crazy about "Cocaine" or "Jackson" but that has nothing to do with the actors singing those songs but rather that I never really cared much for those particular songs in general. I also wasn't big on the songs that weren't sung by Joaquin or Reese. "You're My Baby" sounded like it would have been perfect for Elvis Presley. It wasn't terrible but I think it would have been better if Joaquin had sung the track (as well as the other tracks that were sung by other artists). Despite a few clunkers, I liked the soundtrack overall.

This could have been so much better

2007-10-15
I was really looking forward to this soundtrack, since Walk The Line is one of my all-time favorite movies, and the music, sung by Reese and Joaquin was outstanding. But when I played the CD I realized that I wasn't listening to the mostly "live" recordings from the movie in front an audience (albeit movie "audience"), but was instead an under produced studio recording version with none of the electricity of the movie. It's a shame. This could have been a great CD or double CD. One side with what they are currently selling but the other disc should be the versions we hear in the movie, starting with his auditions and even some of the talking from the movie in front of the songs, especially the parts where "Johnny" is talking about the water in prison and then launches into a rip roaring version of Cocaine Blues, or the time when "June" is telling the audience she has her dress caught in Johnny's guitar, or when Johnny asks her to marry her in the middle of the song. Then we'd have a great CD (like Apocalypse Now). Imagine if that CD didn't have Duvall saying I love Napalm in the morning?. Yes, it's not a movie, but it's a soundtrack. So give us the real soundtrack, and not this watered down version of some studio songs. I can buy Cash's real albums for that.

It's a shame. They could have either chosen to make more money with a 2- Disc set, or just chosen the right way to make this.

GREAT!!!!!

2008-06-23
LOVE THIS GREAT CD. WELL WORTH THE MONEY AND TIME. GOES GREAT WITH MOVIE.
WOULD BY IT AS A GIFT FOR ANYONE.

Old Music, New Twist

2008-06-12
This soundtrack is absolutely wonderful! After having the movie for years, and watching it over and over to hear the songs, I thought it about time to get the actual soundtrack.

Reese and Joaquin put a beautiful new sound on these old classics, and it works! I could listen to this CD over and over.

Now "Times A Wastin'" isn't on the CD, and I saw that someone gave it a bad review because of that. Well June wrote "Times A Wastin'" with her first husband, which is the main reason it's not on the CD. It's not a song that she was inspired to write because of Johnny; it was just a song that she said she'd never sing again, especially with another man, and she did sing it again, with Johnny.

This is an absolutely wonderful compilation of old songs with a new twist. I highly recommend it.

Amazing actors

2008-05-23
I've heard a lot of hard-core Cashers down this c.d. but if ANYONE COULD have done it right, Joaquin was the man and Reese was the lady for the job. It's fun and uniquely theirs while still having that amazing Cash flare. I think its absolutely wonderful.

Great Stuff

2008-05-12
Just a blast, with lots of good energy - and it makes my wife happy!

beautiful music

2008-04-05
I know the songs in this movie are from cash, but I have to say I like this soundtrack very much and they sang these songs at least as good as cash.