It's an unfortunately neatly packaged tale about a man who, by all evidence, constantly and consciously resisted easy repackaging.
Talk to Me (2007)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:119
Fresh:96
Rotten:23
Average Rating:6.9/10
Consensus: A riveting look at the life of legendary DJ "Petey" Greene, Talk to Me goes beyond the typical biopic with explosive performances from Don Cheadle and Chiwetal Ejiofor.
Rated: R [See Full Rating] for pervasive language and some sexual content
Runtime: 1 hr 59 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:Jul 13, 2007 Limited
Box Office: $4,436,352
Synopsis: Academy Award nominee Don Cheadle portrays the one and only Ralph Waldo "Petey" Greene Jr.; Petey's story is funny, dramatic, inspiring – and real. In the mid-to-late 1960s, in Washington, D.C.,... Academy Award nominee Don Cheadle portrays the one and only Ralph Waldo "Petey" Greene Jr.; Petey's story is funny, dramatic, inspiring – and real. In the mid-to-late 1960s, in Washington, D.C., vibrant soul music and exploding social consciousness were combining to unique and powerful effect. It was the place and time for Petey to fully express himself – sometimes to outrageous effect – and "tell it like it is." With the support of his irrepressible and tempestuous girlfriend Vernell (Taraji P. Henson), the newly minted ex-con talks his way into an on-air radio gig. He forges a friendship and a partnership with fellow prison inmate Milo's (Mike Epps) brother Dewey Hughes (double Golden Globe Award nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor). From the first wild morning on the air, Petey relies on the more straight-laced Dewey to run interference at WOL-AM, where Dewey is the program director. At the station, Petey becomes an iconic radio personality, surpassing even the established popularity of his fellow disc jockeys, Nighthawk (Cedric The Entertainer) and Sunny Jim (Vondie Curtis Hall). Combining biting humor with social commentary, Petey openly courts controversy for station owner E.G. Sonderling (Emmy Award winner Martin Sheen). Petey was determined to make not just himself but his community heard during an exciting and turbulent period in American history. As Petey's voice, humor, and spirit surge across the airwaves with the vitality of the era, listeners tune in to hear not only incredible music but also a man speaking directly to them about race and power in America like few people ever have. Through the years, Petey's "The truth just is" style --- on – and off-air – would redefine both Petey and Dewey, and empower each to become the man he would most like to be. -- © Focus Feature [More]
Starring: Don Cheadle, Chjwetel Ejiofor, Cedric the Entertainer, Taraji P. Henson
Starring: Don Cheadle, Chjwetel Ejiofor, Cedric the Entertainer, Taraji P. Henson, Mike Epps, Martin Sheen, Vondie Curtis Hall
Director: Kasi Lemmons
Director: Kasi Lemmons
Screenwriter: Michael Genet, Rick Famuyiwa
Story: Michael Genet
Producer: Mark Gordon, Sidney Kimmel, Joe Fries, Josh McLaughlin
Composer: Terence Blanchard
Studio: Focus Features
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Reviews for Talk to Me
As might be expected in a film that stars two such heavyweights, Talk to Me is a master class in acting. Ejiofor and Cheadle are both terrific, investing their characters with more than just personality, but also with heart and soul.
Watching it becomes an exercise in frustration when a potentially great movie winds up buried inside a just OK one.
Don Cheadle and Chiwetel Ejiofor take charge of screen so decisively that any shortcomings in the script are strictly secondary to their dynamic performances
What's powerful about Talk to Me is the way it acknowledges how difficult it was for Dewey and Petey to face not only their own dichotomy but their real love for each other.
The movie begins with a whirlpool of comedy and manic energy, and then grows, as it must, more serious and introspective.
At its best, the cast of Talk to Me coalesces into the Brotherhood of Keeping it Real.
...a movie that perfectly captures the vibe of a person, a place, a time and a way of being, and even gets, indirectly and without a whiff of sanctimoniousness, to the heart of what being an American ought to mean.
Could stand to focus more on scrupulous sociocultural history and less on compulsively entertaining the audience...has enough untold story and acting chops to make it worthwhile.
Don Cheadle practically bounces off the screen with a high energy, hilarious, and heartrending performance where every unexpected word keeps his audience--and that includes us--spellbound.
Talk to Me offers uplift without phoniness, history without undue didacticism and a fair number of funny, dirty jokes.
Ejiofor recalls Ray Sharkey in The Idolmaker, but thankfully stops just short of Alan Bates in The Rose and Eric Roberts in Star 80.
Captures the euphoric and daring, rebel music drenched energy that fueled radio culture back then, while also tuning in to the organic intensity of the times.
Though there's tension between the two halves of Talk to Me, both of them are quite good.
It's too bad the story of these two men (and two fine performances has to compete with the built-in biopic conventions.
Aside from the subtleties found in Cheadle and Ejiofor's performances, this is biopic bombast.
Explores the many levels of a friendship between a button-down African-American radio program director and a tell-it-like-it-is deejay who connects with the black community in Washington D.C
Latest News for Talk to Me
October 30, 2007:
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Comic book fans should already feel their spidey senses a' tingling, because this week in home video belongs to a certain web-slinging superhero (Spider-Man 3). Of course, we're... More...
October 28, 2007:
51st London Film Festival - RT's Highlights
It's that time of year when the film world's biggest and brightest descend on London and show some Oscar hopefuls nice and early. RT has been spending time eyeing up the films... More...
October 26, 2007:
CameraCinemas.com: The film captures the euphoric and daring, rebel music drenched energy that fueled radio culture back then, while also tuning in to the organic intensity of the times. ![]()
More...
August 02, 2007:
Bourne Is Certified Fresh; Hot Rod Hits the Skids; Bratz is Grade-Z; El Cantante Hits A Flat Note
This week at the movies, we got amnesiac spies (The Bourne Ultimatum, starring Matt Damon and Julia Stiles), loser daredevils (Hot Rod, with Andy Samberg and Isla Fisher), salsa... More...
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