words in edgeways with reese witherspoon

It’s less than twenty-four hours since the Oscar nominations were announced and Wears The Trousers has an audience with Best Actress frontrunner Reese Witherspoon, star of ‘Walk The Line’, the Johnny Cash biopic that everyone’s talking about. Breezing into the opulent flowery surroundings of London’s Dorchester Hotel, Reese apologises for keeping us waiting, though it’s barely been ten minutes since we were told to expect her. But her broad grin beaming out from layers of winter wear is warming enough to melt the most unforgiving of hearts, and after unravelling the woolliest of big woolly scarves, she sets herself down.

The whirlwind of hype and expectation leading up to the Oscars may just be gathering momentum, but Reese seems prepared for what lies ahead. While those shortlisted may be reading from the same script, saying how great it is just to be nominated (usually followed by “…especially to be in the same company as Judi Dench”), the nature of the profession is notoriously competitive, so how much does Reese really want to win? “I think every actor there wants to win, otherwise what’s the point?” Reese laughs, perhaps at her own honesty, before returning to textbook form. “I mean, I’m twenty-nine years old and I’m really lucky to be there and whatever happens I have plenty of awards for this movie and I feel very blessed. If this was it for me, I’d feel really content.”

On the surface, ‘Walk The Line’ may be yet another musical biopic tracing the rise to stardom of yet another icon of rock ‘n’ roll royalty, but the film’s true heart is the feted love between self-styled rebel Johnny Cash (played by ‘Gladiator’ star Joaquin Phoenix) and sweet as (apple) pie folkie, June Carter. Phoenix has said that he wanted to do the film even before he saw the script, so I wondered whether Reese was so easily converted. “James Mangold [the film's director] approached me two years before he even had a script and said, ‘I’m gonna make a film about Johnny Cash’ – I thought my eyes were going to pop out of my skull! I’m from Nashville, Tennessee, which is the centre of country music in America, so not only did I know everything about Johnny Cash and his life, but I also knew everything about June Carter Cash and the entire Carter family, who were the foremost country musicians of our time. I even played ‘Mama’ Maybelle Carter in a fourth grade play, so I was so excited when he said he was making a film.”

Speaking of the film, those who actually met John and June contest to their mutual devotion, and ‘Walk The Line’s heartfelt epilogue concludes that when June died in 2003, her brokenhearted John followed just a few months later. Did Reese find the experience of playing June influential in her own life? “I think every experience of making a film is educational. It’s very revealing because the reasons you chose the film or certain scenes in the film are always, upon reflection, very revealing about a time you’re in or something you’re going through.

I had an immediate connect with June’s background and culture, but I was really inspired by what a modern woman she was. She was married to two different men, had children by both of them, divorced twice and was one of the only women travelling on the road with Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison and Johnny, so she was a pretty tough cookie and they all had so much respect for her. She was just a really informative character to play. Even people who know Johnny Cash’s music don’t really know very much about June Carter. In the ’50s, she was a huge star. She was a great comedienne. She was this travelling woman who sang with every major male star out there and every single one of them had a giant crush on her, but she would just not give them the time of day! And that’s just such a great character to find. I thought, ‘Oh this is gonna be so fun!’ – apparently, Johnny and Elvis had a big fight over her.”

Talking with all the wide-eyed excitement of a gossip-spilling teenager, she adds “and she had a whole thing with Elvis where he was completely infatuated with her and Johnny would have this jealous rage every time his name came up. You find out these little things that are really interesting.”

The film’s impeccable soundtrack is a rich musical tapestry that weaves together the strands of folk, gospel and hillbilly music. Like producer T Bone Burnett’s celebrated work on ‘O Brother, Where Art Thou?’, the authenticity of the music is rooted in the landscape, and when Cash strikes up his characteristic freight train chords, it’s a very raw reaction to his humble and tragic upbringing. As a local gal herself, was Reese similarly inspired by the music?

“Absolutely. Because it was shot in one of the places I grew up, it was a very personal experience for me as I knew the music so well and I knew the feeling, attitudes and culture behind the songs, which is a huge part of getting into a character. I look at where they are from, what their orientation is towards family, their spirituality… and in Walk The Line, a lot of those were just very easy connects for me. Then there was the whole challenge of singing, playing an instrument and doing live performances that was frightening but completely exhilarating.”

One of the most striking and celebrated aspects of the film is its insistence on live performances from its talented actors, and the inspired casting of established performers such as Shelby Lynne as Cash’s mother is a masterstroke.

Not only is Reese singing on screen for the first time, but she also had to capture June Carter’s distinctive twangs and trills. How hard was that? “Well, I started working on trying to sound like June from the very beginning. I thought I was going to be fantastic! I was listening to CDs and singing in my car probably a month before I had a voice lesson, and I thought, ‘I’m gonna nail this!’ In my first meeting with Joaquin…actually the first time he and I ever met, he was saying, ‘I don’t know when we should start’ when I was like ‘get me in there, cos I’m ready’ and he was like ‘I hate her!’ Then I actually started to record and when they played it back and I was like ‘who’s that?’. When they said it was me I said, ‘oh you’re kidding me! No, no, I’m much better than that! I don’t hit all those awkward notes, I don’t make mistakes like that.’ Then I hit the panic button and called my attorney four times in a row saying ‘get me outta this movie!’ because I was determined that I wasn’t gonna suck.”

Reese’s concerns are understandable. In any musical biopic, the ultimate payoff is the performance, and on the concert stage, the actor is literally under a spotlight. It’s no surprise that Renée Zellweger has postponed the filming of the Janis Joplin biopic while she attempts to achieve a vocal verisimilitude. Happily, Reese persevered with June, and after many discussions was persuaded to return. Even then, it took five months of vocal coaching before she could hear the playback “and it didn’t sound like nails on a chalkboard. Really. It was that bad!” Along with autoharp lessons and the constant cycle of rehearsal and recording, she also had her second child with actor husband Ryan Phillippe, which “is probably why I was a little cuckoo!”

Along with all the Jessica Simpson’s and Lindsay Lohan’s of this world, Reese has the potential for a dual career on stage and screen, so is a debut album imminent? “After the movie came out, I got these calls from country music record labels going ‘d’ya wanna make a record?’ Um, no I don’t! I have no desire to do that again, partly just because the performance was so challenging for me. I could do it in a tiny little recording studio, but then we had to go out in front of thousands of extras and it was just terrifying.” Film stars often harbour secret desires about being rock stars, so perhaps ‘Walk The Line’ was the fulfilment of an untapped ambition? “Well I always wanted to be Dolly Parton when I was a little girl. I was obsessed with Dolly.”

With Witherspoon’s slight figure, it’s highly doubtful we’ll ever see her attempting to inhabit the stilettos of country music’s first lady, but Reese still has musical ambitions. “I also really wanted to be a Broadway kid. I would love to do a musical, either on film or on stage as I grew up loving musical theatre. My favourite musical at the moment is ‘Wicked’, which I think is really well done, beautifully staged and art directed. Oh gosh, I like ‘West Side Story’, I like ‘Oklahoma!’ and that kind of classical musicals. I thought ‘Chicago’ was great and so fun. I think that would be a great challenge for me.”

After Ray last year, and with other musical biopics planned for the likes of Nina Simone, Bob Dylan, Iggy Pop, Marvin Gaye and Ian Curtis of Joy Division, I wondered if there was anyone Reese would like to see profiled on screen? “I think it’s just fascinating because it’s just a completely different world with musicians. They travel constantly and their lives are so interrupted, but they lead really fascinating lives. I’d love to see something on Brad Knowle from Sublime as I don’t know enough about him, but I think his music is just haunting. Or Jeff Buckley. Peggy Lee would be interesting. I think she was a visionary, sexy woman at a time when people didn’t think that was very appropriate.”

Naturally at home in comedic films such as ‘Legally Blonde’ and ‘Election’, ‘Walk The Line’ may be viewed as a dramatic departure for the young actress, but June Carter is another in a long line of strong female roles for Reese. Is this something that is reflected in her home life as well? “I think there are a lot of women out there that are basically organising, taking care of, wiping the bottoms of, feeding the mouths of, teaching and educating and helping their families. I think that’s what a lot of women do without any sort of acknowledgement or pat on that back. That’s just what we do. I think movies are great and I have a great time making them but they are not what keep you warm at night and it’s not the most important thing on this life journey. I feel really blessed that I have two wonderful healthy children keeping me grounded and sane.” She laughs, “and throw up on my shoes before an award show! Just so I know, y’know, it’s God telling me to keep it real.”

But between films and family you make it all look so easy, I counter. “Ha! It’s because I’m an actor! No, it’s not easy at all. I’d be lying if I said it was. I have to turn down roles that I really wanna do because of travel. And that’s okay, I mean, make peace with things in your mind. Like my kids right now are home with my husband, but I’m missing something important at my daughter’s school and that makes me feel sick inside.” Again, Reese checks herself in case she sounds ungrateful, “but the benefits outweigh the bad parts. I have to think that I’m so lucky to have these kinds of problems.”

So what’s up next for Reese? “Well, there’s a project right now called ‘Penelope’ that I was thinking about starring in, but because of time constraints, we ultimately decided it would be better with somebody else. Christina Ricci’s playing the part and we’re shooting in London. It’s a fable about a girl who has to come to terms with having a pig face and learn to love herself. It’s really colourful and interesting and fairytale like.”

I wonder, do her children affect the parts she is now choosing? “Yeah. It’s interesting because having had kids so young, I find that I’m a kid too and I’m growing up with them so things they’re interested in really influence me. My daughter will talk about certain things that she really enjoys and I think, ‘wow that’s a good idea!’, or characters she likes so that I try and get the rights to the book.” With the impeccable comic timing that has laid the foundations of her global success, she pauses before the payoff, “Yeah, I basically use my children for my personal gain!”

Whatever happens come Oscar night, Reese has achieved so much in such a short time and the trophy cabinet may need an extra shelf or two after this year. I wonder where she is keeping them all? “Various places. My daughter sneaks them off to the room and dresses them up! She’s gotten quite jaded over the whole thing. When we come home after the awards she goes, ‘Well did you get it or not? Where is it? Are you gonna take it to my room?’ So it’s sweet and she enjoys that.”

Written by: Stephen Collings

Tags: june carter cash, reese witherspoon, shelby lynne

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