harbormoon

"Walk The Line" presents the early years of Johnny Cash, known as J.R. to his friends and family, who struggles with several demons as he transitions from childhood to early adulthood and becomes one of the best-known country music stars in history. In turn, those struggles and hardships become the inspiration behind his many memorable tunes. Joaquin Phoenix, previously known for his work in "Gladiator," seems to step into the role of the Man In Black and capture those struggles in convincing fashion, while Reese Witherspoon does a fine job playing June Carter, a woman who is not without her own struggles; while I'm not convinced that her performance justified an Academy Award, she plays the part well. Given that both leads needed to learn to (a) sing and (b) play their respective instruments in convincing fashion, you start to believe that they are emulating the spirits of the legendary husband-and-wife team. As I suggest, sometimes the drama goes over-the-top and the action seemed to drag some halfway through the film, but I was pleasantly surprised by the story. If nothing else, the music is enough to make it worth a watch.

First off, I'm a lifelong Boston Red Sox fan and thus not much of a Yankees fan. However, this may be one of the best baseball movies, if not one of the best sports films, ever made; even though baseball fans know how the story ends, your emotions will be stirred and you will find yourself rooting for these two players whether or not you have a preference for pinstripes.

Barry Pepper and Thomas Jane steal the show as Maris and Mantle, two Yankee teammates that form an alliance to help carry them through the turmolterous race to break the single-season home run record of Babe Ruth in 1961. While everyone from the press box to the peanut vendor appears to favor seeing the lovable Mick, even the commissioner of baseball seems to have an agenda against the misunderstood Maris. Trying to eclipse a mark of a legend against such adversity proves to be no easy task for either player, and the film does a great job of demonstrating the pressure that each player experienced from his own angle.

Director and noted Yankees fan Billy Crystal obviously put his heart and soul into directing and producing this masterpiece and deserves credit for putting an honest face on the race to the home run record between these two legends. Most impressive was how much care was taken to make the actors appear to step comfortably into the roles of each player; Jane and Pepper appear and act so much like "the M&M boys" that it's spooky. Being a passionate fan of the game probably puts a bias on this review but, even if you don't know the difference between a squeeze play and a double play, it's a great story about friendship and facing odds.