'Walk the Line'

[Gemini Cricket]

I had an opportunity to see 'Walk the Line' last night.

Going into the film, I didn't know much about Johnny Cash, outside of his drug and alcohol problems and a couple of his songs, but I liked this film. I went into it to see the acting performances. I thought Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon were wonderful. Reese's Joan Carter lightens this movie up. I groaned in a couple of places, but on the whole it's a good movie.

I'm curious to see who the Academy gives the award to for Best Actor. It seems like a toss up between Joaquin Phoenix and Phillip Seymour Hoffman.

I have a few songs of his buzzing around my head this morning.

Next on my list is 'Transamerica'. I missed 'The Producers' I think it disappeared this weekend from Boston theatres...

:)

[innerSpaceman]

Yes, this has come back on my blip since it sweeped the Globes for musical film. But I think it's still "doomed" to wait for Netflix, because I'm going to try to squeeze "Matchpoint" into a busy weeked for the third week in a row. Expounding from my success rate at managing to see that movie, I feel that any chances of going back to seeing one I missed from November are pretty slim.

I look forward to seeing it on DVD, tho.

[Gemini Cricket]

I hadn't realized that it came out in November. Has it been that long? I guess I have been focusing my attention on other films. (For me, time flew when I was up Brokeback Mountain. :D )

'MatchPoint' is up there on my list, too.

[Alex]

I enjoyed Walk the Line quite a bit, but can't say that I really loved it. Unfortunately it was too much in the Behind the Music groove of success, decline, redemption. It really didn't help that in the particulars so much is similar to Ray, which I think will hurt may chances with Academy voters.

Most of you know my relationship with music so it is safe to say that I knew little about him musically (and nothing about June Carter Cash). My two biggest points of intersection with Cash are his episode of Columbo (in which he sings "Burning Ring of Fire" (if that's the title) and he played our local county fair once when I was a kid. I didn't see the show but my mom did and her giddiness at recounting how he shook her hand may be the most childlike I've ever seen her (and when your mother has three kids before she's 20 you're either not going to see much childish behavior or entirely too much). So I've always had a soft spot for him just for that encounter with my mom, even though I had no interest in his music.

Then he did "Hurt" not too long before he died and that is one powerful piece of music (didn't make me want to listen to more music though).

The image of Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, and June Carter driving themselves around bumpkin backroads from show to show is an interesting one. A single car accident could have had quite an impact on the American musical landscape.

Witherspoon was great but while Phoenix did a great job putting on the Cash-suit, I never felt the performance coming out through his eyes. It felt more like mimicing than inhabiting.

Phoenix is being Johnny Cash. Hoffman simply is Truman Capote. If the Oscar doesn't go to Hoffman (my pick), then I'd give it to Ledger before Phoenix.

[Not Afraid]

Damn. There are SOOOO many films I NEED to see right now and no time to see them. Walk the Line has been near the top of my list for a while. You know.......Chris is off work Monday and Tuesday........:evil:

[Gemini Cricket]

'Hurt' was amazing. (Yes, I know it's Reznor's song, CP, but still it's very haunting...) :)

I guess I bought him as Cash. I'm hoping they give it to Hoffman, but who knows. I just hope they don't turn it into a left/right thing. Oh, Phoenix won because the right Academy voters voted for him. Oh, Hoffman won with the left. Bleh.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

They made MatchPoint into a movie!?!

I know they're old, but I sure hope they got Brett Somers and Charles Nelson Reilly to at least do a cameo because they (along with the incomperable Gene Rayburn) made that show!

[Snowflake]

Yes, this has come back on my blip since it sweeped the Globes for musical film. But I think it's still "doomed" to wait for Netflix, because I'm going to try to squeeze "Matchpoint" into a busy weeked for the third week in a row. Expounding from my success rate at managing to see that movie, I feel that any chances of going back to seeing one I missed from November are pretty slim.

I look forward to seeing it on DVD, tho.

I will be curious to hear your take on Match Point. I have not loved a Woody Allen film for a while. While I enjoyed this, I did not love it, either.

The perfs were good, although I thought Scarlett Johanson was not anything special and more petulant than anything else. The cinematography very nice, the plot was rather pedestrian and predictable. In some ways, a little too much like Crimes & Misdemeanors. So, in the end it all fell flat. I missed Mahanttan in this movie, the sights of London were lovely, but this all felt so, well, sort of distant.

Donna

[Gemini Cricket]

I dressed in all black today just for fun. Heh heh.
:)

[innerSpaceman]

OMG, I've still yet to see Capote. Garsh darn, why didn't they send me a screener of that??? Do they want my vote for Hoffman or not!!?


SM - MatchGame was made into a movie in the 90's. It was a made for TV thingy that played only on cable. Someone else played Brett Sommers, and was totally unconvincing.


Snowflake - till recently, I hadn't seen a Woody Allen film since his pre-perv days. A few months ago, I rented all of them and watched them in a single week. Meh on most of it, but I am very fond of 'Decontructing Harry.'


I hear Matchpoint is very atypical for him. For one thing (of which I will be very glad), there is no "Woody Allen" character - played by either himself or someone else (ugh - I may never recover from Kenneth Branagh as Woody - bleh!)

[LSPoorEeyorick]

I enjoyed Walk the Line-- it was one of the films I was most excited for this year (talk about great poster, btw.) But I wouldn't classify it as one of my favorites for the year.

Phoenix, who I generally enjoy, was very good as Cash and his singing was especially impressive. I have to give kudos to Reese Witherspoon, who gives her best performance in the film. (Well, Election rocks my socks too, but this is a more developed character.)

Still, nothing can hold a candle to Hoffman's Capote. That whole film, actually, deserves more attention than it's getting. But I've said this before. I feel like I'm on a loop. Capote. Junebug. Capote. Junebug. Capote.