Like the modern day memoir, the feature film biopic isn't always known for following the exact script of reality. And so is true of the film Cadillac Records. The story of Chess Records, the record label founded by Leonard Chess and made famous by the likes of Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Chuck Berry, Etta James, and even a brief appearance by the Rolling Stones, Cadillac Records chronicles the life of both the label and its stars between its it humble Chicago birth and its bittersweet farewell. But while Cadillac Records may not be a comprehensively exhaustive, historically accurate account of the Cadillac-driving musicians of the 1950s and 1960s, it is both a fine film and an inspiring story that brings to life the true power of its music, stories of its musicians, and value of the family they created.

As the film's narrator tells us when the film opens, Chess Records was started by a White man from Chicago and Black man from Mississippi, one Leonard Chess (Adrien Brody) and one Muddy Waters (Jeffrey Wright). And so, with the introduction of Leonard Chess' dream of opening his own club for African Americans and the discovery of Muddy Waters, Cadillac Records begins. Although Muddy Waters would eventually go on to record many well-recognized blues hits and earn a spot in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, before he had even a single track on the radio, his music was a force of power. The first time he hears himself recorded, he responds, "That's what I sound like, huh? Feel like I met myself for the first time." When he captures the attention of his future wife, Geneva Wade (Gabrielle Union), while playing on the street, she asks, "When did you start playing that music, it took me someplace so good?"

Even before Chess Records or any of its stars had taken off, the message of the film is that, in music, there is an inherent power. For those who play it, music is a declaration of self and freedom of expression unlike any other. For those who hear it, music becomes an almost awakening and enlivening experience. In Chess, the recognition of that power is what grows his label. And as he and his musicians share their music with each other and the world, that power is exemplified time and time again.

Beginning during the still-racially divided 1950s, one of the powers of the music coming out of Chess Records is its ability to bring about change and break down barriers. A man who recognizes that change is not only positive but necessary, Chess repeatedly takes risks on new techniques with almost every artist he signs. But more than just taking a chance on new sounds, he also bucks the system by managing and promoting his mostly African-American talent not just to African-American audiences, but to the masses.

As Muddy Waters, Little Walter (Columbus Short), and Chuck Berry (Mos Def) rise to the top of the charts, their music proves that no matter its performer's color, music speaks to all audiences. At concerts, thin ropes separating audiences by color are crossed before the first set is even done. On the airwaves, their music is recognized as no longer separate, but equal. "Some of you might call this race music," says a DJ. "But I call it Rock and Roll." And as artists of all sorts draw influence from (and at times literally steal) the music of Chess Records' stars, the wide range of music's all inclusive reach only grows. However, carried along by more than just music, an important aspect of the Chess Records story is also the nature and value of family. When Chess and Muddy Waters first begin the business, Chess tells Muddy Waters, "Starting a business together, it's like starting a family." And as Chess and Muddy Waters' relationship matures and their Chess' records family grows, every relationship reveals both the difficult and invaluable aspects of that very reality.

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