MovieChat Forums > Cadillac Records (2008) Discussion > Blown away by Beyonce...

Blown away by Beyonce...

posted 15 years ago by holydanny
29 replies | jump to latest

I finally got round to watching Cadillac Records today and I must say I was mesemerised by Beyonce's performance. I admit I have little reference of the real Etta James (other than her music) to compare, but despite this I was genuinely moved by Beyonce's portrayal and thought she showed incredible growth as an actress in this performance, which is far and away the best of her career so far.

Likewise her musical numbers were amongst the best in the film, and while her voice was still very distinct I loved her take on Etta's classics. I can understand why some Etta fans might be annoyed that they chose to rerecord the songs rather than have her lipsync to the originals, but personally I thought her own singing added another layer of depth to her performance; after all while she may be a decent actress who continues to improve (as this film clearly shows!) music is where her true genius lies.

I'm sure many people will disagree with me, but in the case of Beyonce I think she could win 5 Oscars, 6 Golden Globes, 4 BAFTAs and a Kids Choice Award and people would still claim she's a terrible actress.

This was a great performance. Bravo Beyonce!

[–] BrownestEye 15 years ago

I avoided this film for so long because I was sure I didn't want to see Beyonce stink up another film role. Seriously, I thought she was going to be wooden and terrible as she has been in past roles. I was shocked to find she did quite well in this movie. The emotion behind her singing was spot-on and quite moving, and I thought she actually did really well with the meeting-her-father scene and the coked-out, fireplace scene. I found myself surprised by her instincts in the latter scene. Whether it was Beyonce, the director, or the awesome Adrien Brody, that scene worked. For me, anyway. One random aspect of her character I really liked was the way she sort of carried herself, you know? The way her body moved as she sang, the staccato bounce in her walk...i don't know, it was these little things that made the character seem a little more whole.

That being said, like the poster above me, I could probably give Beyonce a little more credit if this was a fictional character. It wasn't. Visually, it was just very difficult to buy her as Etta. I'm not saying actors always have to be dead ringers for the people they portray, but at the end of the day all I saw was skinny, conventionally beautiful girl playing dressup in a white wig. Etta was/is not this. Furthermore, as music was such an integral part of the story, I thought she could have done a better job emulating Etta's vocal style. I mean, she didn't even attempt to alter her voice, and it had way too modern a sensibility. Felt like Sasha Fierce 2010, not Etta 1960s.

And these things probably weren't all Beyonce's fault. I can pretty much guarantee the studio knew a power-belted Beyonce performance would be more dramatic for a general audience, and that a skinny, slightly rough-around-the-edges version of mega-star Beyonce!! would be more marketable than a curvier, huskier (I use this term positively) lesser-known actress that might have more closely approximated Etta.

Anyways, that was my beef with her portrayal. But again, for what it was, I did enjoy her performance. I was pleasantly surprised.

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[–] joseph-hagee 12 years ago

I watched this last night On Demand and I wasn't impressed by Beyonce either.In the interest of full disclosure I'm not a fan.I don't dislike her,I just don't care for her type of music.She did not impress me with her acting,it was as if the director just said,"Ok,honey,all you have to do is cuss a lot and be a biatch."Somebody else said it better on another thread,it was Beyonce being Beyonce dressed as Etta.She didn't capture Etta in the singing either,Etta's voice was grittier,more raw.But for $3,it wasn't a bad movie.

[–] xellos49698 8 years ago

Actually, came here because I was so impressed with Beyonce Knowles performance here. The whole movie actually surprised me by how good it was.

I wish I had watched this in theaters, and not tonight for the first time. I would easily put it on par with Straight Outta Compton, which I also really liked a lot.