Stop the presses! The cinetrix has now seen one--count 'em, one--Oscar winner from the previous year: Reese Witherspoon as June Carter in James Mangold's paint-by-numbers Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line. Of course, not having seen any of the other nominees' work, I'm in no position to judge whether her performance was somehow the best, but it was pretty sturdy.
Keep in mind, though, I'm a Reese fan of long standing, happy to evangelize heartily on behalf of her white-trash fairy tale Freeway to anyone who'll sit still long enough. Hell, I've suffered through Overnight Delivery and Sweet Home Alabama, people.
Even so, I have to think that when it came to playing the better half of country's dashing duo, Reese had the easier job. Playing a professional, determined [the chin!] spitfire is part of Witherspoon's M.O. Moreover, she's portraying a person who, while arguably far more famous than Johnny Cash when they met, is far less well-known now. Yes, there're the older folks back home to answer to on issues of fidelity, but she has far more latitude than Phoenix does here.
Speaking of fidelity, the Fesser raised an interesting question. When's the last time you saw a romance for the ages so clearly built on the foundation of adultery? Yes, you want June and Johnny to be together, and first wife Viv is a cranky bourgeois bitch, but there's one moment, beautifully played, that reminds us that their real life must have been a lot messier than Hollywood's "love conquers all" rush to couple formation would have us believe:
A good Christian woman, a fan of the Carter Family, castigates June--in the grocery aisle--for divorcing her first husband and marvels that her parents still speak to such a sinful child. June, shattered, manages a tiny, contrite "I'm sorry I disappointed you, ma'am" that proves the woman right: she has been brought up better than that.
It's a dagger through the heart of this love affair, and it's hard to imagine any actress brought up above the Mason-Dixon line uttering that line as convincingly as Witherspoon does. I just wish the rest of the film was as sharp and as deeply felt.
