Review of Talk to Me (2007) by Eric O — 03 Feb 2008

[font=Arial]Radio is a lonely format; the disc jockeys and radio personalities are a combination of priest and trusted friend to the masses that listen. Whether you wished to relax, reflect, or retaliate, they are the ringleaders, the host, and the instigator that pulls you in. Ralph Waldo ?Petey? Greene was a man who didn?t demand your attention with his voice, but made you listen all the same. During the late 60s and 70s, Green took to the airwaves and brought Washington D.C. a cold bucket of hard truths about race and taste using his roguish charisma and quick tongue.

In Talk To Me, Kasi Lemmons? new film is focused around the undeniable force known as Petey Greene, but the bonds of his friendship with producer and conspirator Dewey Hughes. Hughes (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is introduced to Greene when he goes to visit his brother in prison, played by Mike Epps. Greene is the prison DJ, waxing prison philosophy with the records. On passing, Greene asks for a job at the radio station Dewey works for upon release. Dewey shrugs it off, not expecting Greene would be getting out any time soon. But six months later he?s out due to interesting circumstances and immediately looks up WOL with the help of his girlfriend Vernell (Taraji P. Henson). He wants a gig on the radio (she just wants to meet the Nighthawk, a sexy sounding DJ played by Cedric The Entertainer), which Dewey can?t offer. But he eventually gets put not only on the radio, but also during the morning drive time after the two finally come understand each other over a game of pool.

His first day doesn?t go so well, calling Barry Gordy a pimp on the air. He?s immediately fired by the station owner (Martin Sheen), but is not so easily gotten rid of. Dewey and Greene stage of stunt that pays off in spades and begins Greene?s career as a DJ. Greene is perfectly blunt about his own shortcomings and leaves no stone unturned when calling out injustices. In a way, the microphone is a part of Greene?s soul, a sounding board to voice his own angers and hurts and allowing others to do the same. This is very important on the day Martin Luther King Jr. died. With Washington ripping itself apart, Petey stayed on the microphone and tried to bring rationality to a maddening situation.

Dewey?s respect for Petey is based on his admiration for talking his mind, but he also sees a star in him. He gets him into stand-up comedy, television, and eventually landing a spot on The Tonight Show, which is something that Petey never wanted to begin with. His love was with the microphone, speaking to the hearts of those who wished to listen. But we also see that Dewey is really the one seeking these things, making Petey into his surrogate, as we see in one of the saddest moments in the picture.

In the background always is Petey?s vices, which involves mostly alcohol and women. But his real addiction was with the microphone and the sound of his own voice. He has seen a rough life that had lead him to prison and would eventually lead him to an early grave. And yet the movie doesn?t ogle at Petey like a subject, but makes him feel like a man of his time, of his place. The focus is placed on his friendship with Hughes, which becomes more brotherly. By the time they have their nastiest quarrel, they still act with the same resentment that only a sibling feud can produce. Vernell is also a large part of this picture, neither playing referee nor stand in the wings lover, she?s a force to be reckoned with.

Let?s talk about Don Cheadle. He has done Oscar-worthy performances in his past; his most memorable was in Hotel Rwanda. This is another cobblestone to his legacy, an Oscar-worthy performance that?s my favorite so far this year. He finds the poetry in the honesty of this performance. I wonder if he had listened to Petey?s show, had seen his TV program, or he just developed the character within. I have never seen anything about Petey Green prior to this, so I don?t know, but that?s beside the point. But the unexpected performance by Chiwetel Ejiofor needs to be talked about. Ejiofor has been a major presence in films for the last five years and he constantly shows that he has the makings of stardom (although his name might be a handful for American audiences). He allows Dewey to be a man caught between two cultures, two different points of view, and is constantly juggling as to which one he needs to be. By the time we get to the ending, he has found a perfect blend of both that shows just how the character has grown. And let?s not forget Taraji P. Henson who just explodes with vibrancy and delight. I?m waiting for someone to make a movie just for her.

Director Kasi Lemmons has made another amazing film (If you haven?t seen Eve?s Bayou, you don? t know what you?re missing) about flawed men trying to come to peace with the world around them, especially the bond between them. She doesn?t get tricky with her shots, but allows the frenetic energy of the performances and the skilled dialogue of the script to their job. Considering that there are a lot of things that would feel contrived if the story weren?t true, she makes the film feel authentic and possible. But then, Petey?s charisma is something that speaks for itself.

Oh, and did I mention that the soundtrack is amazing? With some great classics of the 60s and 70s thrown together with a score by Terrence Blanchard, you?d almost want to see the movie for the music as well.

All in all, this is what I?ve been longing for in the summertime, a movie that makes you feel good but also makes you think as well. It brings you back to all those DJs that you listened to before and just how much of a difference hearing that lone voice in the night helped to bring daylight closer. That, to me anyways, is the marking of a great story, and one of the best films of the year.[/font].