I rented
Cadillac Records this weekend and even though I loved all the actors I don't like the movie. Now I love the director
Darnell Martin. The Sista keeps getting better and as the
First Afrikan American Female to helm a Major Motion picture (I Like It Like that) she gets my respect but she is listed as the
screenwriter of
Cadillac Records. This is a story about
Leonard Chess and Chess Records.
Miss Martin, let me ask you before you wrote the screenplay did you actually
RESEARCH your subject matter? Did you read any of the biographies or interviews from that time? I gotta know! I read
Jerry Wexlers Autobiography and in it Mr. Wexler ( A Jewish Man) describes
The Chess Brothers, Leonard and Phil (Also Jewish) as anything but benevolent and fair.I quote,
" I walked into a local bar and the Chess Brothers and the
Behari Brothers (another famous Jewish set of Record Company owners) were sitting at a table and called me over.
"Jerry! We hear that you guys over at Atlantic Records are promising them five cents a record and playing them five cents a record! Why not just give them Five Hundred dollars and be done with it? " The
Chess Brothers made alot of money off of
Willie Dixon, Howling Wolf and
Muddy Waters. Muddy Waters once told biographers that Leonard Chess said
"Muddy you'll always have a job with me....when you get old you can paint the walls of the studio." The
Rolling Stones visited
Chess Records and found their
HERO, Muddy Waters, doing just that. Mick Jagger stated that they walked in and there was Muddy Waters, who they named their band after his song Rolling Stone, is painting the walls.
Mick: What are You doing here doing this? Muddy Waters: I gotta Eat! The Rolling Stones took Muddy Waters on tour and it gave him a boost to his career. You kinda mentioned this but the movie overall is a big untruthful puff piece made to look like a feel good story that really is the story of
another record company shark who
bilked alot of Musicians out of their royalties and publishing.
There may have been alot of good in Chess and his Brother but
Muddy Waters was
not wearing a suit and driving a Cadillac like your movie makes it look. And as for Bee as
Etta James. Well, I don't believe that there was no big
love affair between the two that you alluded to. I don't think
Leonard Chess was that
Loving of a Dude.
I know that movies allow for literary and artistic license but
Damn Darnell! Damn Darnell!
Then we watched Spikes
Miracle of St. Anna. I enjoyed the film. The only real criticisms I have is the waste of Michael Ealy in the role of Bishop. I know
Michael Ealy can play a hustling pretty boy well but I've watched
Showtimes Sleeper Cell and
There Eyes were Watching God and know for a fact the boy has alot more
range. It's a shame he's
limited and reduced to
Bishop. Derrick Luke will
grow as an actor but I do believe that he was miscast in this role. He was simply too young to have been a
Sgt in the Army. He looked in and he acted it! Alot of those guys were
Men at that time and had been
Men for a long time. But I ain't getting down on Spike cause
Hell, at least he has tried to
stretch over the years.
And it don't hurt that I Like Spike!
BE Careful! BE Mindful! BE Prayerful!
Jaycee