Cadillac Records

'Cadillac Records' is an admirable attempt to tell the tale of the legendary Chess Records,which did for Blues what Atlantic Records did for R&B/Soul,Jazz,Rock & Roll,etc. The main problem is that Hollywood can always be counted on for totally screwing up any & all forms of social history (and fumbles the ball,big time as usual). The film's writer/director obviously didn't do a whole lot of home work in looking for historical authenticity. It seemed to content that Chess Records only had about a handful of talent recording (Muddy Waters,Howlin' Wolf,Etta James,while totally ignoring Bo Diddley & the stable of other equally talented musicians & song writers). A friend of mine who knows his onions in the field of creative African American/Black music told me of a lot of the glaring omissions that was left out of this film (there were actually two Chess brothers that ran the label),as well as the fact that several Rhythm & Blues,Rock & Roll & even Jazz acts also recorded for Chess Records,back in the day. Adrian Brody,who normally pulls down some world class roles seems content to be the closest thing to a used car salesman (while spouting a nearly non stop,fire cracker string of swearing out of his mouth). Jeffrey Wright has some nice screen time as Muddy Waters. Some of the rest of the cast just seems wasted in this half baked attempt of telling the story of Blues music. This film only played out for a couple of weeks before it ended up as a 2nd string, budget line feature (does that tell you something?). Rated 'R' by the MPAA, this film features wall to wall swearing,lots of sexual goings-on,drug & alcohol abuse & other material that you probably wouldn't want junior to see (at least until he/she's a bit older)

At the time, rock and roll is but a gleam in a few unknown musicians' eyes. Through a generous helping of Waters/Walter's and other artists' music—with a fair helping of poetic license—writer/director Darnell Martin tells the relatively unknown story of the headwaters of the river of modern blues and rock and roll. The acting is excellent, and, no doubt, Cadillac Records is Jeffrey Wright's magnum opus to this point. Most viewers will recognize him from roles where he plays "the intelligent black man," and in the movie W, he plays Colin Powell. From the extras on the DVD, one learns that Wright has spent many years, several on stage, honing his craft. And he's good, even great, as the inimitable Muddy. Particularly, he manages the voice well, which is a low, gravelly mumble... though often hard to make out if your air conditioning kicks in.

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Brian Wright Copyright 2009

The trouble with these kind of movies is that they will never satisfy the purists among us. OK so maybe it glosses over the facts and makes the history all shiny and Hollywood, but I will see how many people will come away from this movie WANTING to find out more about the history of blues.

So what if its not perfect, if you want a perfect history you will go and buy a documentary on the subject. I want to be entertained when I watch a movie not sit there and critique history.

I think all the performances in the movie are convincing and great. I especially loved Beyonce, she just seems to ooze talent, although the on-screen time is shorter compared to Dreamgirls, she is extremely commanding.

As for the covering Etta's song, these are outstanding. I am in love with the songs all over again, and in love with these versions.

It is interesting so many people have commented on the historical inaccuracies of the film and condemn the film because of this. No one said it was a historical film? It is an excellent film, and I would consider it a lot more than just popcorn entertainment...it has the *flavor* of history. And what is this about looking for historical details in the film? The film maker made a great film with a storyline built around music. We don't get to see such films which modify facts to suit the narrative and their budget. It made for great, entertaining viewing....One of the things that I have difficulty understanding is when some people either want facts or the book a film is based on to drive a feature film. Unless it's a documentary I don't think the filmmaker is obligated to base the film as such so long as the film openly declares that it is based on facts or book...i.e. it is not claiming to be factual but simply derives it's basic storyline from either as the case may be...beyond that the film has artistic license to adapt the historical or fictional narrative for the film. But if a film faithfully represents history or a particular book, that is welcome too.

Cadillac Records was focused on Chess Records and some of it's principal artistes. Who cares if there was a second brother or that there were other artistes....the film maker told a fictional interpretation of the facts and made it a thoroughly enjoyable film. We learn to care for the characters and get to experience their struggles, frustrations, relationships, foibles and talents etc.

Consider this too "fact junkies" - how many movies out there make for a good story to an audience who is NOT into a particular genre of music or art form, and yet gives them some inkling that a particular topic was loosely based on facts or a book. Whether or not everyone who saw the film came away convinced of it's historical inaccuracies, I am confident that those who did not care about such inaccuracies or even the blues, they certainly came away with a better perspective of a small aspect of the history of the blues (and some aspect of rock music) as well as a record company owner who supported and helped some musicians to become big names in the business. Such a segment of the audience would be unlikely to go see a documentary on the history of the blues. The film introduced the blues by making them accessible to an audience segment who otherwise would have been in the dark.

Getting down to the film, ALL actors portray their characters very well. I thought Eamonn (sp?) Walker and Beyonce playing Howling Wolf and Etta James respectively were quite simply amazing. Beyonce especially. Both their performances were riveting. I refer to them specifically because they had relatively smaller parts compared to Adrien Brody and Jeffery Wright, who did a fantastic job as well. If you see films to enjoy a good story...you have one here in spades. And it is sad that the movie did not get to play in theatres as long as it ought to have. This is a loss for film viewers as much as it is for the filmmakers who made it. But I know this movie is getting more play on DVD because word-of-mouth is getting around. Highly recommended.

Anyone remember those old K-Tel compilation albums with the hits slightly sped up so the K-Tel folks could pack in more songs? CADILLAC RECORDS (CR) gives a similar treatment to the story of Chess Records, nicknamed "Cadillac Records" because the Polish-American Chess brothers, Leonard and Phil (Adrien Brody and Norman Reedus, reunited from the film SIX WAYS TO Sunday), would give the artists Caddies as rewards -- out of the artists' own royalties! Chess Records got the music of Muddy Waters, Etta James, Chuck Berry, and other seminal R&B performers out to the general public, climbing the charts as what were then called "race records." Perhaps because of time and/or money constraints, writer/director Darnell Martin seems to rush through the Chess stars' highs (sometimes literally, with scenes of drug and/or alcohol abuse) and lows, forcing her to condense her subjects' dramatic life stories to the point where they don't even seem to age (other than a few perfunctory silver streaks visible in Brody's hair late in the film) despite the indication that years have passed. Even the Chess brothers' own story is only half-told, with the focus being on Leonard as Phil is rendered all but invisible. Heck, for half the film, I thought Phil was just another sound engineer, since we in the audience only ever see him during recording sessions! That said, I still found a lot to like about CR. I was riveted and moved by the events and the performances, and the musical numbers kick butt; I want the soundtrack (maybe even the original versions of the songs :-))! Jeffrey Wright commands the screen as Muddy Waters, who becomes Chess Records' first star, complete with groupies. He comes home one night to find wife Geneva (sympathetically played by Gabrielle Union) with a baby in her arms -- left there by a fan who says Muddy's the father. Mos Def adds sly humor as Chuck Berry. Eamonn Walker is downright scary as Muddy's rival, Howlin' Wolf. Columbus Short breaks your heart and drives you crazy all at once as Little Walter, whose lack of a mother or self-discipline proves to be his tragic flaw. Beyoncé Knowles shows she has range as both an actress and a singer in her fiery, heartrending portrayal of the talented but troubled Etta James. Leonard tries to help Etta to learn to "sing the blues, not live it," but with Etta's emotional baggage, that's easier said than done. Things only get more complicated when she and Leonard become attracted to each other despite his having a sweet, pretty wife, Revetta (Emmanuelle Chriqui). I'm not surprised that in real life, Etta herself gave her blessing to Beyoncé's soulful rendition of "At Last," the ultimate make-out song and Presidential inauguration anthem! :-) Although Leonard Chess is almost more like a host here than a well-drawn character, Brody nevertheless works well with the cast and has great chemistry with Beyoncé. In fact, he gets a good amount of on screen love action, including a nude scene with the fetching Chriqui! :-)