CADILLAC RECORDS

Plot:

Cadillac Records tells the true story - as narrated by Willie Dixon (Cedric The Entertainer), about Leonard Chess (Brody), a young man with dreams of marrying his dream girl and owning a Cadillac. To achieve this goal he starts a record label and signs a young sharecropper named Muddy Waters (Wright), a master on the slide guitar who along with a superior, but hothead young harmonica player named Little Walter (Short), together they help put Chess Records on the map. To keep the label afloat and to continue driving Cadillacs he later signs the talents of the Howlin' Wolf (Walker), Chuck Berry (Mos Def) and the fiery Etta James (Knowles) along with the song writing skills of Willie Dixon. But with the fame and fortune, came the problems, the drinking and drugs, and arrests and death, which soon brought the demise of the once powerhouse label.

Reel Talk:

Let me start by saying that Beyonce is starting to close the year with another sure to be blockbuster movie much like her other film Dreamgirls that closed out 2006. There are already buzzes about awards for the performances in this film and rightly so. If it were up to me (but its not) everyone would get an award. The performances were that good, from Wright who is a true rising star that shines in the role as Muddy, Short as Little Walter was outstanding, Walker who looks just like the menacing Howlin' Wolf (check the web for pics of the real Wolf). And Beyonce who has been trying to be acknowledged as an established actress might just get what she wants with this one. Then there is Brody as the smooth Chess, of course the hilarious Cedric The Entertainer and the talented and versatile Mos Def. It is truly a great cast assembled for a great movie. The best thing about movies depicting true stories is the history that they provide, I mean the knowledge that you learn about these musical legends is priceless. This is truly one of my "you must see movies".

Starring: Adrien Brody, Jeffrey Wright, Beyonce Knowles, Gabrielle Union, Columbus Short, Cedric The Entertainer, Eamonn Walker and Mos Def
Directed by: Darnell Martin Rated: R

I give it 5 corndogs and a soda

By: Corndog - The Reel Hustler