Cashing In On Two Great Performances – The Golden Globes Get It Right With “Walk The Line”

I did not watch the telecast of the Golden Globes last evening. I was at a second-run movie theater in Arlington, MA finally catching up with the film “Walk The Line.” The night for me was a mixed blessing. I saw the film with a friend with whom I had been wanting to catch up, so that was a real plus.

On a less encouraging note, I walked to the ticket office to purchase my ticket and said: “One for ‘Walk The Line,’ please.” I received my ticket and more change for my $10 bill than I had expected. She had given me – unprovoked by any request on my part – the Senior Citizen rate! A sign clearly states: “Senior Citizens – 65 and over”! I think of myself as a ‘youthful” 58 – having come into this world as an early Baby Boomer in 1947. Oh well, to regain a sense of persepctive, I cling to a quotation that a friend of mine once shared in talking about the whole issues of aging. He said: “Aging is an issue of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it don’t matter!”

I managed to drag this aging Senior Citizen carcass into the theater for a pleasant surprise. I have never been a fan of Joaquin Phoenix or Reese Witherspoon. If, before last night, you had asked me to list my top 500 favorite actors, neither Joaquin nor Reese would have made an appearance on the list. That all changed as fast as you can say: “Ring of Fire.” The performance of these two actors and singers in this film was astonishing and worthy of the Golden Globe awards they won last evening. As my friend and I walked out of the theater together, we both remarked on the changes we had undergone while watching the film. We both came away with a renewed and expanded appreciation for the talents of Johnny Cash and June Carter, and of Joaquin and Reese.

The film reveals Johnny Cash’s troubled family history, including the violent death of his big brother at a young age. I have to wonder what it must have been like for Joaquin to deal with that bit of art imitating life, having lost his older brother, River Phoenix, to a drug overdose in 1993.

If you have not seen this film, I recommend you find a way to see it – either in the theater (I am sure that there will be a re-release in first-run theaters now that it has won multiple Golden Globes) or on DVD.

Enjoy.

Al