Walk the Line
What a missed opportunity. This fine film gets so much right: Joaquin Phoenix’s smoldering portrayal of Johnny Cash, Reese Witherspoon’s unexpectedly strong portrayal of June, the high-powered musical numbers, the very look and feel of the thing, that it makes up for a script that is a little bit flat. But shouldn’t a bio-pic include the most powerful elements of the bio? Where in this movie is Johnny Cash’s life-long wrestling with God?
Patrick Carr, the co-author of "Cash: The Autobiography" (1997), told the Washington Times that Cash "retained his Christian beliefs throughout his life…He was an absolute believer in the Christian God." (It’s a belief Carr himself declines to share). When Cash was going through his years of drinking, drugging, and fooling around, he was simultaneously "conscience-stricken and extremely ashamed of himself." If the movie had shown us that interior conflict, it would have added a much-needed layer of complexity to the character.
And how about this life-changing event? At the end of his rope, and having taken "pounds of pills," Cash goes into a mountain cave. He wanders deeper and deeper down the passages until his flashlight batteries burn out. He then lies down to die, figuring no one will ever find him. But then he experiences a thought taking shape inside, a kind of instruction. It tells him that he does not have the authority to decide whether he lives or dies. It’s not up to him. So Cash gets to his feet, and, in total darkness, stumbles back out through the labyrinth to the light.
But that’s not in the movie, nor any other exploration of what faith meant to Johnny Cash. We get only a brief glimpse - maybe 10 second’s worth — of June and Johnny in the parking lot of a country Baptist church, walking towards the open doors.
That’s it.
The challenging and empowering elements of Christian faith were a strong part of Johnny Cash’s life. So why weren’t they part of the movie? A film that is subtle in presenting themes of faith and spirituality could well deserve recognition as "Best Spiritual Film;" a film that goes out of its way to avoid those themes does not.