Finally, a black film with no drug and gun dilemmas, and no classrooms going from foolios to Rhodes Scholars. The new movie “Talk To Me” is coming out soon, and stars Don Cheadle, Taraji P. Henson, Cedric the Entertainer, Mike Epps, Keith Sweat (?!), Chiwetal Eljofor, and Vondie Curtis-Hall. As you can see, lots of Black Hollywood. It is also directed by one of the first really well known black female directors, Kasi Lemmons, who directed one of my faves , “Eve’s Bayou” and “The Caveman’s Valentine “(shout out to Purple Zoe!). She also happens to be the wife of Vondie Curtis-Hall.
This is the synopsis from IMDB:
The true life story of Ralph Waldo “Petey” Greene Jr. 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, 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 brother Dewey Hughes. 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 and Sunny Jim. Combining biting humor with social commentary, Petey openly courts controversy for station owner E.G. Sonderling. 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.
From Invisible Woman: Sounds great to me. Like the concept, like the cast….I love seeing movies about blacks in other eras….I just hope it can keep up with the summertime/blockbuster crowd, though.
side note trivia…this dude was the first person to ever interview howard stern
From Invisible Woman: I need to fiddle around for the next few days until I’m up to speed on WordPress. You’ll probably see some changes ths week, but I’ll keep posting….love!
