Cadillac Records portrays the highs and lows of rock and roll stardom in Chicago during the 1950s.

This true story depicts the beginning of Chess Records on the south side of Chicago, Illinois.  Leonard Chess (Adrian Brody) begins his dream of a recording studio by stumbling upon blues musicians by the names of Muddy Waters (Jeffrey Wright) and Little Walter (Columbus Short).  Leonard eventually breaks the race barriers of the 1950s and records some of the most famous musicians of all time:  Chuck Berry (Mos Def), Howlin’ Wolf (Eamonn Walker), and Etta James (Beyonce Knowles).  This movie is a depiction of what this era was like with the drugs, sex, music, violence, and of course Cadillacs.  Cadillac Records is a miraculous story of the rise and fall of fame and the change of not only the music culture but human culture.

This was an excellent film and was ingeniously acted. I thought all the actors did an excellent job, however, I will say that Beyonce raised the bar in this film.  Her portrayal of Etta James (one of my favorite blues singers) was so passionately and accurately acted.  Cadillac Records is a great history lesson into the lives of the legends that help build today’s music.  The film has great visuals and listening to some of most famous blues songs of all time is definitely a plus.  Even though this movie is about a year old, I would give this movie 4 stars and would definitely recommend seeing Cadillac Records, or even buying it.