Some real life stories are just meant to be shown on the big screen whether or not they are completely and entirely true, or even only have a 1% truthfulness within its presentation. Whether Elvis Presley made a pact with the devil and used it to rise to fame as he did during his music artist journey or he simply did not need any help entertaining music lovers because he was born gifted, heck, no one really cares. It's the music that counts the most and for that reason alone, how these famous artists got there is simply an add-on bonus for us all to enjoy.Cadillac Records is one example of such path in life for Etta James, Chuck Berry, Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Howlin' Wolf and Bo Diddley. These great musicians of all time individually have their own stories to tell, from how they got up there to stardom, the in-between stumble and falls and also what it is that made them.
The movie may not have been entirely true, or were they, nobody ever really knows. But how Director Darnell Martin depicted each individuals were simply amazing and . The movie had me wanting for more, despite it being 109 minutes long. Maybe they should have gone for 2 hours. Regardless, plot-wise, it was well thought of. There may be few holes in it, like when Little Walter (played by Columbus Short) came out looking far aged compared to Muddy Waters (played by Jeffrey Wright) after Walter was thrown out by Leonard Chess (played by Adrien Brody) from Chess Records. Apart from that everything else really made sense despite the correctness in information.
The music in this flick was really inspiring. With a cover of 'At Last' - Etta James' hit single, by Beyonce Knowles, an old hit song was revamped into perfectness. Every single song in the movie was re-produced by the actors. You have Mos Def, Jeffrey Wright, Columbus Short, and Eamonn Walker recording their own versions which really got through to the younger generation of today. This was a great move I feel, because no one really wants to hear those same old songs by the originals in a musical movie biopic.
I was waiting for each scene anticipatingly. That's how good the camera works was. The acting actually did help that out a lot. Matt Dillon was initially called up for Chess' role. As good as Dillon would have been. I would not change the casting of Academy Award winner Adrien Brody. He was born to take on that character. I'm not sure if Chess was actually a calm, cool and sleek person, but if he was, Brody did brilliantly. In the context of history, Chess Records was actually managed by Leonard and Phil Chess. However, I feel that Martin took a great risk of discarding Phil in the movie and it did the film the greatest favour ever. It would have probably mess things up for Brody if he would to have shared the limelight with someone else.
What can I say about Beyonce. She was the BOMB, singing gracefully as always and turning her multi talents into another singing movie. The fact that she really put on weight for the movie was just the tall tale of the production itself. Jeffrey Wright has to share the same credits as Beyonce, and to turn up 5 notch in performance level after those 2 James Bond movies, this was the first time that I've seen the actor giving out so much in one single movie.
Overall, despite cinema seats only went on to US$7 Million in sales after a US$12 Million budget, this one is for those who loves sitting in front of the HBO channel. Wait for the DVD and get one. You'll love it.
4/5 stars mainly for great acting.
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