Walk the Line (2005)

Walk the Line rating: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic

IMDb7.8/10· 279K votes

Rotten Tomatoes83%

Metacritic72%

TMDb7.498/10· 3K votes

With 83% on Rotten Tomatoes, backed by 7.8/10 on IMDb and 72/100 on Metacritic, critical reception of this film has been positive.

About Walk the Line

A chronicle of country music legend Johnny Cash's life, from his early days on an Arkansas cotton farm to his rise to fame with Sun Records in Memphis, where he recorded alongside Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins.

Cast of Walk the Line

• 

  Joaquin Phoenix

  as John R. Cash

• 

  Reese Witherspoon

  as June Carter

• 

  Ginnifer Goodwin

  as Vivian Cash

• 

  Robert Patrick

  as Ray Cash

• 

  Dallas Roberts

  as Sam Phillips

• 

  Dan John Miller

  as Luther Perkins

• 

  Larry Bagby

  as Marshall Grant

• 

  Shelby Lynne

  as Carrie Cash

• 

  Tyler Hilton

  as Elvis Presley

• W

  Waylon Payne

  as Jerry Lee Lewis

• 

  Shooter Jennings

  as Waylon Jennings

• 

  Sandra Ellis Lafferty

  as Maybelle Carter

Walk the Line facts

Budget

$28M

Box office

$186.8M

Our take on Walk the Line

James Mangold's 2005 biopic follows country legend Johnny Cash from an Arkansas cotton farm to fame at Sun Records in Memphis, where he recorded alongside Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins. Part music drama, part romance, it leans on live vocal performances and the pull of Cash's story rather than tidy hagiography. The result works best for viewers who love period music films and character-driven drama, and who don't mind a familiar rise-and-struggle arc. You don't need to be a country fan to be drawn in, since the emotional core is the human one. Expect strong performances, memorable songs, and a portrait shaped by love and hard-won redemption.