Mug shots of Mos Def as Chuck Berry from his arrest for driving with a white girl across state lines appear in front of smiling white teens surfing. The Beach Boys’ “Surfin’ USA,” a rip-off of Berry’s “Sweet Little Sixteen” plays.
The scene is one of the many injustices against black musicians underscored in “Cadillac Records,” TV Director Darnell Martin’s wandering drama about the birth of the Chicago Blues and rock ’n’ roll inside Chess Record’s 1950s studios, founded by Adrien Brody’s Leonard Chess. The Polish immigrant, determined to become rich, reminds us of how much a pimp and producer with good intentions have in common.
Thanks to Mos Def’s sharp Berry, always on the verge of a smile, and Columbus Short’s Little Walter, quick with a smart crack, pulling a trigger and wailing on his electrified harmonica, a humorous undercurrent bolsters Cadillac’s rambling story.
Rather than start and stay on the remarkable Jeffrey Wright’s Muddy Waters, the greatest bluesman who influenced the Rolling Stones and many rock gods, or focus on Beyonce Knowles’ mesmerizing, troubled Etta James, a woman with daddy issues who can take down the house with her earth-shaking vocals, “Cadillac Records” spreads itself too thin with a superficial examination of too many characters.
When the audience starts to get attached to a particular face, the storyline then pushes that supporting star into the background. We’re left with the next character’s set of problems, but without a sense of how much this means to him or her, or why we should really care.
Other scratches on “Cadillac Records” are Martin’s heavy reliance on close-ups during one particular love scene — the shots made me feel claustrophobic — and the narrator’s commentary. Cedric the Entertainer, as the narrator/songwriter Willie Dixon, stops the audience from living in the moment. Instead, we’re looking back from a distance with him and his annoying reminders of how important what we’re witnessing is.
If you swallow the trite-but-true, rags-to-riches start, and the middle years wasted boozing, getting high and cheating on the good wife at home, you’ll be rewarded with unforgettable recording sessions and glimpses of greatness. It’s too bad the bumpy movie isn’t as smooth as the artists it honors.
Cadillac Records
Three stars out of five
» Stars: Adrien Brody, Jeffrey Wright, Beyonce Knowles
» Director: Darnell Martin
» ated: R for pervasive language and some sexuality
