It's "Good Morning, Washington" -- as opposed, but not unrelated, to Vietnam.

	Michael Gibson Don Cheadle stars in Kasi Lemmons' "Talk to Me." Click photo for larger image. 'Talk to me' Starring: Don Cheadle, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Martin Sheen Director: Kasi Lemmons Rating: R for pervasive language and some sexual content Web site: focusfeatures.com/talktome

The actual title is "Talk to Me," director Kasi Lemmons' simplified but largely true story of D.C. radio legend Petey Greene, the ex-con-turned-talk-show-host and civil-rights activist whose fast trash-talkin' style dovetailed dynamically with the social, political and soul-music revolutions of the 1960s.

This was the time and place for miscreant Petey (Don Cheadle) to "tell it like it is."

Once out of jail, he teams up with Dewey Hughes (Chiwetel Ejiofor), the straight-laced program director at D.C.'s popular black station, WOL-AM, to bulldoze his way into an on-air gig. Once installed, he and his street-smart humor quickly outpace the popularity of all fellow DJs, while making life miserable for "respectable R&B station" owner E.G. Sonderling (Martin Sheen).

Apoplectic Sheen lends credibility to the semi-farcical scenes of Greene's early on-air misbehavior, as do the (underused) talents of Cedric the Entertainer, playing DJ "Nighthawk" Bob Terry -- complete with his matching Borzois on leashes.

Greene's serious epiphany comes with Martin Luther King's assassination and subsequent riots in 1968, during which he was credited with helping restore calm to the Capital. Listeners tuned in to him not just for the music but to hear a fellow African-American speak directly and honestly to them about race and power in America.

Three fine acting jobs adorn the film: Cheadle, usually quite restrained, throws his normal caution to the winds and turns in a riveting, charismatic performance. Ejiofor, largely if not totally suppressing his native accent, is a solid foil (Greene keeps calling him "Mr. Tibbs"). Their chemistry works. But perhaps most wonderful is Taraji Henson as Greene's electrifying girlfriend Vernell, a glorious vision in mini-clothes with irresistible smile and legs. She's even better here than in "Hustle & Flow."

If the MLK crisis was Greene's epiphany, the nonepiphany was his abortive appearance on "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson. As a Grade B Lenny Bruce, he blew it -- much to the devastation of ambitious Dewey.

In fact, once he achieves fame, neither Petey nor the screenplay by Michael Genet and Rick Famuyiwa knows what to do with it. When the film's second half shifts focus from Petey to Dewey, "Talk to Me" shifts to caricaturing the black-power era. The alternation between comedy and serious message-making is too jagged, which is a letdown in view of Lemmons' wonderfully subtle debut film, "Eve's Bayou."

Even so, she gives us an uplifting if imperfect evocation of a time and place and fruitful friendship between two trailblazing African-American men. Greene helped transform black radio from a commercial cog in the white-establishment wheel to something deeply relevant to his community.

"Talk to Me" is a reminder of why people used to really listen to their radios, and when radio stations really listened -- and talked -- to people, instead of just shouting at them.

Hey, Rush? Howard? Al Franken? Quinn & Rose? Are you listening?