Movies Opening This Week (Week 4)

Two period movies with different scopes collide in this week's edition of Movies Opening This Week.

Cadillac Records

If there's anything Beyonce learned from Dreamgirls, it's to take advatage of her voice and beauty in only music-related films from now on.

I have a feeling that it'll merely be a by-the-numbers musical (and to avoid confusion, it's not a "musical" musical, it's the adjective musical) biopic, but the big guns are here, portraying people with even bigger guns. And this one has people portraying Chuck Berry, Howlin' Wolf, The Rolling Stones, and the kitchen sink. But enough about pop cultural references and actors, how about the thing the biopic is referring to?

Well, it's about Leonard Chess and his company, Cadillac Records, because after a hit single was made by one of his label's artists, he would buy them a Cadillac. Sex, violence, and rock-and-roll are the flavors of the day here, and the movie encapsulates the era between the rise and fall of the record label.

Frankly, I feel a Golden Globe award coming on...

Frost/Nixon

Frank Langella stars as the infamous Richard Nixon, who 3 years after his resignation, accepts an offer to appear in a talk show hosted by David Frost, a Brit. From the negotiations, to the interview proper, the pace never lets up, and soon enough, they may have to face a battle in the court of law. Will Nixon answer Frost's questions about Watergate, or avoid them? We'll have to know when we see it.

Currently, it's at 93% in the Tomatometer in the website Rotten Tomatoes, mostly lauding Frank's Oscar-worthy performance as the disgraced President. Additionally, Oscar-winning director Ron Howard directs this flick and taps Peter Morgan (The Queen) as the scribe.