It's May 1966. Dewey Hughes (Chiwetel Ejiofor) works programming at WOL-AM in Washington DC. During his visit with his brother in prison, he meets outrageous Petey Greene (Don Cheadle) who cajoles a promise to see him after he gets out. Petey gets out much sooner than expected. The station is losing ground to the competition but manager E.G. Sonderling (Martin Sheen) still won't let the street hustler Greene on the air. Dewey and Petey lock themselves in the booth and end up becoming the legendary media personality. Taraji P. Henson plays Petey's wild girlfriend Vernell Watson. Cedric the Entertainer plays another radio personality Nighthawk Bob Terry.
It's a pretty straight biopic from Kasi Lemmons. I don't think Martin Sheen fits his character. He needs to be more straight laced and conservative. Cheadle and Ejiofor are terrific. Don Cheadle energizes the whole movie. It is without a doubt his movie and he owns it. Ejiofor is there every step of the way. He is just as powerful to counter Cheadle. Taraji P. Henson needs an honorable mention for her great work. The movie does fade in the last act as it loses the energy of Petey Greene. It may be a better option to follow Petey rather than Dewey.
It's a pretty straight biopic from Kasi Lemmons. I don't think Martin Sheen fits his character. He needs to be more straight laced and conservative. Cheadle and Ejiofor are terrific. Don Cheadle energizes the whole movie. It is without a doubt his movie and he owns it. Ejiofor is there every step of the way. He is just as powerful to counter Cheadle. Taraji P. Henson needs an honorable mention for her great work. The movie does fade in the last act as it loses the energy of Petey Greene. It may be a better option to follow Petey rather than Dewey.