Exploring the shadows of the Man in Black

Though Johnny Cash didn't live to see "Walk the Line," James Mangold's film about the singer's life and work, he was very much part of its making.

Mangold, who wrote the screenplay with Gil Dennis, was originally drawn to Cash's two autobiographies, "Man in Black" and "Cash: The Autobiography," not so much for what they said but for what they didn't say.

"I wanted what John hadn't given up," said Mangold, at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this fall for the premiere of his film. He noted that in the two books, Cash didn't elaborate on many of the darker elements of his life. Mangold (previously best known for directing "Girl, Interrupted" and "Identity") wanted to find the rest of the story, the part that hadn't been told.

"When someone discusses their drug problem and they just say, I started taking these pills and it got out of control — well, it's never that simple," said Mangold, of Cash's books. "Or, 'I've always loved June Carter,' but it's more complicated than that."

For many years, Cash was in love with Carter but was married to someone else, even as he traveled on lengthy concert tours with Carter. "How did that work? How did that feel?," wondered Mangold. "What happened when you were singing [love] songs together ... but you're married to someone else, but you're in love with the woman who's standing next to you?"

Mangold and Dennis made their way to Cash through James Keach, a close friend of the singer who eventually became a producer of "Walk the Line." The filmmakers met Cash and Carter (who became June Carter Cash when they married in 1968) in 1999, and "that began a wonderful relationship," said Mangold. The screenplay emphasized the two singers' long, rocky courtship, culminating in Cash's onstage proposal in 1968.

After many long talks, the script began to take shape. Mangold read the first draft into a tape recorder so that Cash could listen to it (his failing eyesight made it difficult for him to read). His feedback was, Mangold remembered, "really wonderful, kind of guiding us about what he felt was missing. With the first draft, he wanted to make sure there was enough romance between him and June."

Director interview: James Mangold, "Walk the Line"

The couple read subsequent scripts, offering many notes. They usually told stories of what they felt was missing. Neither saw the finished film: June died in May 2003; John just a few months later. Family members maintained the connection, with their son, John Carter Cash, serving as an executive producer of the film.

"The thing about John that I hoped for and was really rewarded with was that, as an artist, he understood we would have to go to some dark places," said Mangold. "He was an artist of the shadows. He understood that the only way you'd feel light in the film is if you also felt the darkness."

Asked where moviegoers wishing to learn more about Cash's music should turn, Mangold recommended "Live at Folsom," the album recorded in 1968 at Folsom Prison which, he says, "captures so much of John's energy."

"The thing about that album that many people don't realize, and don't stop to think about, is that who today would have the nerve to go play for 5,000 convicts in a room with no barrier between you and them? No one's manager would ever let them think about it. What's the upside? It was a real testament to the courage that John had."

Moira Macdonald: 206-464-2725 or mmacdonald@seattletimes.com