Johnny Cash! The Man, His World, His Music

(Robert Elfstrom, US 1969, 94 min., 16mm)

Senior Matinee. Following the release of At Folsom Prison, Robert Elfstrom’s cinema verité–style documentary Johnny Cash! The Man, His World, His Music reveals remarkable insights into the intense and complex personality of legendary country singer Johnny Cash. Without narration, excepting the words of the Man in Black himself, Elfstrom follows Cash as he tours prisons, performs with his new wife June Carter Cash, visits both a Native American reservation and his childhood home, helms the wheel of his tour bus, patiently lends an ear to unknown musicians, and learns about the massacre at Wounded Knee. Plus, in extremely rare footage, Cash is seen recording with folk icon Bob Dylan. A level of sincerity and trust between filmmaker and subject lends an authentic appeal to this sophisticated and fascinating portrait of the humble and eminently gracious Johnny Cash.