Cadillac Records

Don't see Cadillac Records. Don't miss the music, though. Okay, maybe see the film when it goes to DVD.

There are a lot of problems with the film, and what's worse is that there's so much potential here. This could have been a great, great movie, and there are several strong performances wrapped within a plot that fails to do justice to the influence of Chess Records. Adrien Brody plays Leonard Chess, the record executive who began the label in the 1940s by selling records out of his Cadillac. It seems a little convenient that this film is out as General Motors begs for money from the federal government, of course, and there is no subtlety here: LOOK AT THE TRADITION OF THE CADILLAC, THE HISTORY! WE HELPED BREAK DOWN RACIAL BARRIERS! THINK OF THE TRADITION! I actually laughed aloud in the theater several times.

I need to say some good things about this film, though. Amazing cast. Brody wholly fails, but I think it is due to poor writing, not execution. Jeffrey Wright does a nice job as Muddy Waters. Mos Def predictably steals the screen as Chuck Berry. Columbus Short does a fantastic job as Little Walter, and Beyoncé's Etta James is the highlight of the film. Eamonn Walker as Howlin' Wolf is another bright spot; you may know him from HBO's Oz. Cedric the Entertainer's narration is so poorly written that I shook my head a few times in the theater, just hoping he was about to lead into another performance from Beyoncé or Mos Def. Gabrielle Union shows some talent as Geneva Waters, Muddy's wife.

None of these characters are developed as much as they should be, as much as you'll want them to be. What this does, hopefully, is introduce some of these musicians to new audiences, and perhaps it will lead to more developed biopics of Etta James or Howlin' Wolf in the future.

And please, please buy a Cadillac.

Howlin' Wolf's "Smokestack Lightning" (1964):


Eamonn Walker's Howlin' Wolf:


Beyoncé doing Etta James's "All I Could Do Was Cry":