A Reese Witherspoon Movie That Even I Enjoyed

"My favorite book of all time is Johnny Cash's autobiography 'Cash' by Johnny Cash." - Rob Gordon, 'High Fidelity'

Last night I went out the door of the local Ted's Montana Grille with Bison on the brain and Johnny Cash on my T-shirt. Anyone who has ever had the priveledge of witnessing me eat a meal while talking knows that it is usually the other way around; my natural build has blessed me with a cushioned bib for a chest. I had met several friends for a surprise birthday party for Gateway International's Young Adult Pastor, Charley Farmer. Earlier in the evening, I had made up my mind to see 'Walk the Line', the much-anticipated biopic on the one and only Johnny Cash. As only a music geek could, I walked into the theater with five other friends with the cover of 'Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison' printed across my shirt. My first thought was how young the crowd in attendance was. Needless to say it surprised me; I'm not bragging or boasting, but far be it for me to think it possible that anyone under the age of 21 would have any interest in Johnny Cash thanks to a popularized, tightly-run top-40 radio market (see previous rants).

From the moments of the opening credits, as the thunderous sound of the Folsom prison inmates clapped and stomped along to the simple, steady rhythm of the Tennesee Three, I was sucked in. I was in a way witness to an American legend in its definitive form. Of course, the movie tricked me into watching another story take place. Beneath the fine portraits and landscapes of the classic Cash tunes was the interesting, expansive story of Johnny and his true love, June Carter of the legendary Carter family.

As Johnny's autobiography and the film both illustrated, his interest in June was sparked from his childhood days, hearing her sing on the radio. By the time they finally met, he was married with two children and she was newly divorced with two children as well. Those times that were truly theirs were on stage, singing together. That was intimacy; that was passion. It just happened to take another decade or so for time to catch up with what seemed destined.

The movie as a whole was a revelation in the same way that Cash's video for "Hurt" was no more than two years ago. "Hurt" found Johnny confronting the reality of his mortality, and the harsh truth within that brought much attention and respect from a crowd. Needless to say, I shouldn't have been shocked at all to see so many young folks at this movie. They were looking for the other side of the story; perhaps they could find where his strength to face that mortality came from. My answer was only confirmed when I came home and went straight to his last album before he passed, 'American IV: The Man Comes Around'. Within the liner notes, Johnny summed it up best:

I am persuaded that nothing can seperate me from the love of my God, my wife, and, my music. Life is rich when I can come home, after hours in the studio, feeling as frayed as a hundred Big G strings, and curl up to June Carter. She's a soft, fluffy Mama Bear. That's when I give God a "Thanks a lot, Chief."