| | | Inspired by a True Story.
Features: DVD, Widescreen, English, Spanish, French, Dolby, Dolby Digital (5.1)
Academy Award nominee Don Cheadle portrays the one and only Ralph Waldo "Petey" Greene, Jr. in this funny, feel-good and inspiring true story. Ex-convict Greene talks his way into an on-air radio gig with program director Dewey Hughes (Chiwetel Ejiofor), and his unprecedented "tell it like it is" style breaks all the rules while electrifying a city and bringing a nation together when it needs it the most. Also starring Cedric The Entertainer, Taraji P. Henson, Mike Epps and Martin Sheen, Talk to Me tells the extraordinary story of an outrageous and beloved voice ready to shake up the world in the movie critics are hailing as "fresh and revelatory" (Carina Chocano, Los Angeles Times).
"...a great subject and a great actor working in tandem..." Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune
"A rowdy, richly offbeat biopic." Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
"Immensely entertaining!" Ty Burr, Boston Globe
Editor's Note
TALK TO ME's Ralph Waldo "Petey" Greene isn't quite the household name that some of his contemporaries (such as Richard Pryor or Redd Foxx) are, but this smart drama about the Washington, DC, disc jockey is a fascinating film. At the film's opening in the mid-1960s, Greene (Don Cheadle, HOTEL RWANDA) hosts a beloved radio show--at the prison where he makes his home. While visiting his incarcerated brother, Dewey Hughes (Chiwetel Ejiofor, INSIDE MAN) hears Greene's brash humor and honesty, but he brushes off Greene's attempts at a job at the radio station where Hughes works. But Greene is soon released from prison, and he won't forget his dreams of hosting his own radio show. He hounds the staff of a Washington R&B station, including Hughes and the station manager (Martin Sheen, THE WEST WING). When he finally gets a job, his show resonates with the people of the city and the changing times of the civil rights movement.TALK TO ME could be just another biopic or racial drama, but thanks to its fine cast, it rises above the standard fare. Cheadle is engaging as the electric Petey Greene, equally adept at portraying both Greene's pathos and his humor. While Ejiofor has excelled in smaller roles in INSIDE MAN and CHILDREN OF MEN, this drama could represent a chance for him to move into leading-man territory. Henson was wonderful as the meek Shug in HUSTLE & FLOW, but she ably transforms into the vivacious Vernell here. Director Kasi Lemmons (EVE'S BAYOU) lets the performances drive the film, but they're supported by a strong script and period details that make the film worth watching.
| Features | Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound | | Deleted Scenes | | Featurettes: Who Is Petey Greene? & Recreating P-Town | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English, French, Spanish |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Universal |
| Release Date: 1/27/2009 |
| Running Time: 119 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2007 | | Catalog ID: 62033304 | | UPC: 00025193330420 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Available Subtitles: English, French, Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1 |
| Cast & Crew
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| | Professional Reviews | Entertainment Weekly
"[A] rowdy, richly offbeat biopic....The two actors are marvelous. The elegant, magnetic Ejiofor makes Dewey a complexly divided man....Cheadle plays Petey as an antic hedonist..." -- Grade: A- 07/20/2007 p.57New York Times
"[A] funny, earnest, affectionate new film....As portrayed by Mr. Cheadle, Petey Greene is a person of quick wit and tender heart, an irrepressible hustler whose fundamental integrity is never in doubt." 07/13/2007 p.E1 USA Today
3 stars out of 4 -- "TALK TO ME speaks powerfully to audiences with its potent blend of extraordinary performances and engaging soundtrack." 07/13/2007 p.13D Empire
3 stars out of 5 -- "Cheadle gets his teeth into the character, nailing his distinctive drawl....Charming and good-hearted..." 12/01/2007 p.98 Total Film
3 stars out of 5 -- "[A]n affectionate homage to a singular talent and a vital social document, filled with as much cultural comment as sassy, risque humour." 01/01/2008 p.61 Sight and Sound
"[R]esonant about race and power issues in a way that pitifully few movies are nowadays....It has something significant to say." 12/01/2007 p.94-95 Ultimate DVD
4 stars out of 5 -- "[A]n emotionally grounded and aspirational tale....Director Kasi Lemmons brings the period back to life..." 04/01/2008 76 Reel.com 8 of 10
The outlines of Kasi Lemmons' new drama Talk to Me are familiar, a biopic in the vein of Ray, Walk the Line, and La Vie En Rose. But the subjects of those movies are ultra-famous, while the name Petey Greene (Don Cheadle) is one of history's footnotes...Little known he may be now, but when he died in 1984, thousands attended his funeral, and Lemmons honors him with an engaging drama that explains why this man meant so much to those privileged enough to have heard his voice...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. Cheadle especially faced a challenge. With a character as larger than life as Petey, it would be easy to veer into caricature, but--proving once again why he's one of the finest actors of his generation--Cheadle nails it...For her first film since 2001's The Caveman's Valentine, Lemmons has produced a modest, but appealing drama. You may enter the theater wondering who this guy is, but you will leave happy that you met him. - Pam Grady
Chicago Sun-Times 9 of 10
The story of Petey Greene was a movie waiting to be made. Greene came out of prison to become, literally overnight, a popular and influential DJ. He was on WOL, a Washington, D.C., station that was looking for a morning man to connect with its African-American audience and got more than it bargained for. Don Cheadle gives a fascinating performance as a man able to step out of a cell and into a broadcast booth, but not sure where to step next...The fame of broadcast personalities is by its nature transient. How many people remember Petey Greene? Or, under a certain age, have heard of him? Jay Leno could go on a Jaywalk for miles and not find anybody who has heard of Arthur Godfrey. We labor through life sweeping our memory ahead of us into the dustbin of oblivion. But someone like Petey Greene made a difference and made a mark, and broadcasting is better because of his transparent honesty. He helped transform African-American stations more, probably, than their mostly white owners desired. And talk talents like Howard Stern, as he himself says, owe him something. - Roger Ebert
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