'Straight Talk' is a passable romantic-comedy, that has fairly entertaining moments. The Performances, especially by, James Woods, is Superb! 'Straight Talk' Synopsis: A woman ditches her small town life for big city Chicago, where she becomes a sensation as a radio show host.'Straight Talk' is an Ideal Lazy Sunday-Afternoon Watch. It's one of those romantic-comedies that delivers fair entertainment. Craig Bolotin's Screenplay is decent, but it could've been tighter. Barnet Kellman's Direction, is above-average. Cinematography, Editng & Art Design, are functional.Performance-Wise: As mentioned, Woods is superb & stands out, like always. Dolly Parton acts & sings well. Griffin Dunne is good. Michael Madsen has a bit role. Others lend support.On the whole, 'Straight Talk' is passable.

Shirlee Kenyon (Dolly Parton) leaves her small town and deadbeat boyfriend (Michael Madsen!) for the big city (Chicago). She loves giving advice to people. She accidentally gets on the radio one day and starts giving callers her honest, kind advice about their love lives and such. She is immediately a hit (just like real life huh?) and becomes wildly popular. Investigative reporter Jack Russell (James Woods--yes THAT James Woods) starts looking into her past and slowly starts to fall in love.The story is ridiculous and familiar at the same time but I DID like this movie. Parton's charm and acting (I think she's good) carry this film through its rough spots. The story moves quickly and (if you don't think about it TOO much) it's actually not too bad. Also Parton sings a few nice (if unmemorable) songs. The title track was supposed to be a hit but didn't make it. The only negative thing about this is Woods. Now, he's a great actor but casting him as a romantic lead just doesn't work. He's uncharacteristically frantic and seems uncomfortable. Still he does try. Casting Madsen as Parton's boyfriend was another bad choice. Look for a young Teri Hatcher at the beginning before she hit it big with "Lois and Clark". I was one of the few people to see this in a theatre. There was virtually no advertising and the movie disappeared quickly. The studio dumped it completely...but it's not THAT bad. If you hate Parton steer clear of this. But, if you like her, you'll get a kick out of this. I give this a 7.

Some might dismiss this as a "feel good" movie and indeed it is. But it's a lot of fun and a bright vehicle for the always delightful and vivacious (bodaceous?) Dolly Parton. Sure, the plot is predictable from the first scene. But there are a lot of laughs and good moments on the way to the trite happy ending. But the measure of a movie is whether you enjoy it and this is a wonderfully honest and enjoyable picture.

A simple and inspiring movie. Dolly Parton's performance was outstanding!!! Got a little choked up at the end. A great movie when you want something inspiring and touching. A pure entertainment kind of deal. Disagree with Ebert's criticism that the movie is not representative of the radio or journalism business as I really don't care; i didn't watch the movie to be informed or educated about either of these businesses.