Saturday, May 26, 2018
Talk Radio
- Commentary: I'll bet you've never heard of this movie. I saw it in 1988 when it was released theatrically and I've never forgotten it. It was an absolute must-have when I decided to beef up the Oliver Stone section of my movie collection. All the movies in this posting, in fact, were procured at the same time, for the same reason. This movie is strange and, yes, "haunting". It was the first movie I watched of the three when I received them, just to see if my memory of its impact on me was correct. It was.
Although you might think the movie would be dated 30 years later, it's not. American talk radio has not calmed since 1988. If anything, it's gotten more virulent, and now includes Canadian talk radio.
Although I'm labeling this movie a "period" movie, it wasn't meant to be that. It hit the theaters only four years after the assasination of Alan Berg, the talk radio host about which this story was written, so, obviously, no period inflection had to be invented during the production of this movie. It seems "period" now, though.
One more thing: I don't usually notice the juxtaposition of a musical score with a movie, especially if it's done well. In this movie it's done so well that it actually adds editorial comment, especially at the end. If you decide to watch this movie, watch, and listen, through the end credits.
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Eric Bogosian Barry Alec Baldwin Dan Ellen Greene Ellen Leslie Hope Laura John C. McGinley Stu John Pankow Dietz Michael Wincott Kent Zach Grenier Sid Greenberg Anna Levine Basketball Game Woman Robert Trebor Jeffrey Fisher Linda Atkinson Sheila Fleming Allan Corduner Vince
Interested in the Wikipedia write-up? Here it is.
Release Date: 1988
Directed by Oliver Stone.
Labels: biography1, drama4, haunting1, historical2, oliver-stone, period2, political1
