A Complete Unknown, the Bob Dylan biopicdirected by James Mangold, echoes his 2005 masterpiece Walk The Line, a biographical drama that delves into the life and career of Johnny Cash. Johnny Cash is among thereal people depicted inA Complete Unknown.Walk The Line,starring Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon as Cash and June Carter, respectively, garnered critical acclaim for its raw portrayal of Cash’s struggles with addiction and his enduring love for Carter.
WhileA Complete Unknownfocuses on Bob Dylan’s journey,the inclusion of Johnny Cash as a pivotal figure creates an intriguing link to Mangold’s earlier work, showcasing the director’s ongoing fascination with the Man in Black and his enduring impact on American music.
James Mangold Made Walk The Line Years Before A Complete Unknown Included Johnny Cash
Walk The Line Was A Masterclass In Biopic Filmmaking
James Mangold revisits a major breakthrough in his directing career by referencingWalk the Line.Released in 2005,Walk the Lineis a biographical drama depicting the life of legendary musician Johnny Cash and his turbulent romance with country singer June Carter. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon portray Cash and Carter, respectively, in this poignant exploration of their love story amidst Cash’s battles with addiction and the pressures of fame.Walk the Lineused true Johnny Cash factsto create a heartwrenching backstory of his struggles with addiction and the strength of his bond with June.
Walk the Lineis a shining example of a musician biopic, and it quite rightly has an 83% score onRotten Tomatoes. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon’s performances are highly praised, portraying a truly believable chemistry between Cash and Carter. Phoenix’s vocal performances also testify to his commitment to the role. The movie tells the story of Johnny Cash from childhood to music legend. It transports viewers to the historical setting, successfully depicting the challenges Johnny faced in his personal and professional life. The Folsom Prison performance in particular is a striking one to live up to.
Walk The Line Shows A Different Side Of Johnny Cash Than A Complete Unknown
The Stories Depict Different Parts Of Cash’s Identity
A Complete Unknownis not a total revisit toWalk the Linebecause the 2005 movie depicts the earlier years of Johnny Cash’s career. This inevitably shows a different side of Cash. Although John Carter Cash has opened up about his parents Johnny and June’s respective additions (perReuters), claiming they were ongoing,Walk The Linedepicts a complete recovery and renewed humility.The narrative of the movie is designed to emphasize the strength of Johnny and June’s relationship and their unconditional, redemptive love for each other, which would prevent Johnny from succumbing completely to his addiction.
When James Mangold madeWalk The Line,he was unaware of their friendship…
A Complete Unknown’s focus, in contrast, is on the friendship of mutual respect between Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. When James Mangold madeWalk the Line,he was unaware of their friendship.Johnny Cash was important in Bob Dylan’s storybecause, unaware that he was Bob Dylan’s idol since “I Walk The Line”, Cash began to write to Dylan expressing admiration for his music. They encouraged each other’s work back and forth throughout their friendship, and Dylan expressed how much this meant to him in his eulogy for Cash in 2003.
How Walk The Line & A Complete Unknown’s Johnny Cash Stories Overlap
The Years Of Their Biographies Feature In Both Movies
Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash’s real-life friendshipmeans there is an overlap between the stories ofWalk the LineandA Complete Unknown.Cash began writing to Dylan in the early 1960s and, although they had written for quite some time before meeting, they probably met before the 1964 Newport Folk Festival depicted inA Complete Unknown.The pair collaborated in recording sessions between 1967 and 1969. During this time, in theWalk the Linetimeline, he would get engaged to and marry June Carter.
Although events and timeframes overlap inWalk the LineandA Complete Unknownduring the years Cash and Dylan became friends, they have very different perspectives. In aninterview withEntertainment Weekly,director Mangold said:
“I found myself watching Boyd sing a song that Joaquin sang 20 years ago in a different movie, but the movies have such entirely different perspectives. Johnny Cash is crossing through the New York Folk world because he was such a fan of all music and was an early advocate of Bob’s. It’s a very different story, but one that does overlap.”
The different contexts for the vocal performance also highlight the difference between what Cash represents inWalk the Linecompared toA Complete Unknown.The former covers the context in which “Folsom Prison Blues” is written and how different it is from the gospel music Cash was singing previously. InA Complete Unknown,he is performing the song in the context of being an inspiring figure in Dylan’s story.
A Complete Unknown
Cast
A Complete Unknown is a biographical movie that follows a young Bob Dylan as he integrates with New York and catches the eye of the folk singers in the area, eventually propelling him into stardom.
