Talk Radio

Talk Radio (1988)

Runtime: 110 minutes

Directed by: Oliver Stone

Starring: Eric Bogosian, Ellen Greene, Leslie Hope, John C. McGinley, Alec Baldwin

From: Universal

Another movie seen via request. As has happened a decent amount of times by now, a messageboard discussion spurned me watching a film I otherwise wouldn’t have. Someone in a thread brought up Under Siege 2, and brought up the performance of Eric Bogosian as the villain-there was outside the box casting which managed to work… at least from what I remember the last time it was viewed. There was then discussion of Bogosian and I admitted that movie was my only exposure to him… which technically is wrong as he not only provided voices in Beavis and Butt-Head Do America, he apparently is in the “cinematic masterpiece” known as Blade: Trinity. I have no memory of that, and it’s a film I last saw 4 ½ years ago.

A fan of his may have been aghast but for certain recommended Talk Radio. Makes sense, as it was his most famous starring role (it may be his ONLY starring role for all I know), was greatly expanded from his own one-act play and fitting for someone who has been a monologist, this of course is full of dialogue as he portrays a controversial talk radio host. The character of Barry Champlain is one that riles up the dregs of society by targeting hatred and satirical barbs at the callers who phone up the Dallas late-nite radio show he hosts solo. Concerning the views he presents on the show, Bill Maher is perhaps the best comparison and I’ll leave it at that.

The character is also Jewish-Champlain is not his real surname yet he admits his religion-so you know the absolute bottom of the barrel filth that is sometimes directed his way. As some of the callers express some vile views concerning Jewish people, minorities and the like… why was I reminded of social media… oh yeah, because it’s also filled with that trash! I was also reminded of all cable news networks (not just Fox News) and the apparent end goal of angering their viewers.

The key thing to note here: Barry Champlain is a real jerk. It may seem funny at first that he rips apart ignorant people—then you realize he’s a real caustic person who doesn’t treat his love interests well at all, to the point that his ex-wife had rather good reason to leave him. It may not seem enjoyable to follow such a person-some movies like that aren’t appealing to me. Yet, that was the point of the movie—Barry does not realize he’s an SOB who isn’t much better-if at all-than the people he berates and castigates on his show. What a performance from Bogosian, although the cast as a whole is solid and all the leads (Ellen Greene, Leslie Hope, John C. McGinley & his hilarious hair/beard combo, Alec Baldwin) deliver quality performances. Then again, McGinley’s hair is only the third best; what eclipses that will be left for those to see for themselves.

While it’s not the first film I’ve seen by Oliver Stone, it’s the first reviewed here. I mentioned controversy before, and talk about someone who embodies that term. My opinion of him personally won’t be shared here, but in the future more of his work will be discussed here. For a movie mostly set in a radio station, it never was boring between the editing and the cinematography, the latter of which was rather claustrophobic. Talk Radio is not always an easy watch by any means—it was still a great recommendation as it was a fascinating movie about a repulsive, deeply flawed character.