In the turbulent Chicago of the 1950s involved the young Polish émigré, Leonard Chess a chaotic Bluesband for his bar in the rough South Side of Chicago. Chess is impressed by the energy and heart blood of the musicians - especially guitarists Muddy Waters and the impulsive harmonica player Little Walter and organized a session in a recording studio for them. After initial successes in the R&B charts, Chess decides to found his own record company, Chess Records. Any musician who reaches the charts, gets a Cadillac as a reward. So Chess Records quickly become succesfull. Over the course of time some of the greatest blues musicians sign contracts. But when he met the young, idiosyncratic singer Etta James and takes her under his wings, it is increasingly difficult to him, to seperate his professional ambitions from his private passion.
- Cast: Adrien Brody, Jeffrey Wright, Beyonce Knowles, Columbus Short, Cedric The Entertainer
- Director: Darnell Martin
- Format: Widescreen
- Language: German (Dolby TrueHD 5.1), Italian (Dolby TrueHD 5.1), English (Dolby TrueHD 5.1)
- Subtitles: English, German, Italian, Turkish
- Aspect: 16:9
- Run Time: 108 minutes
