‘I’m getting the band back together.’With those words, Elwood Blues establishes one thing: The blues are back.The next line in the saga of brothers Jake and Elwood Blues occurs 18 years later. Elwood (Dan Aykroyd) is released from jail only to find out that his brother Jake (played in the original Blue Brothers by John Belushi) died while Elwood was incarcerated. Elwood is shocked to find out that even more has changed in the 18 years since he was put behind bars. Curtis (played in the original by Cab Calloway), who was the custodian at Jake and Elwood’s orphanage and a surrogate father to the boys, also passed on while Elwood was locked up. Lacking guidance and direction, Elwood visits Mother Mary Stigmata (Kathleen Freeman), his prior schoolteacher. He gets more than he bargained for when Stigmata asks him to be a mentor to Buster (J. Evan Bonifant), also an orphan. Elwood takes off to reunite the band, while Buster tags along for the ride. While attempting to get drummer Willie Hall (played by himself) to come back, Elwood meets Mighty Mack McTeer (John Goodman), a bartender at Willie’s strip club. The guys hit it off, and travel together to round-up the other members.If you expect ‘Blues Brothers 2000’ to be as good, if not better than the original, you will be sorely mistaken. I classify the new one as a kinder and gentler Blues Brothers. The movie appeared to be toned down for younger audiences, with its PG-13 rating. The plot starts off slow, but picks up momentum as the journey to get the band back together takes shape. One thing that the sequel has in common with the original is the musical performances and cameos that are sprinkled throughout. As Elwood and the band travel to Louisiana to compete in a talent contest, they run into the likes of B.B. King, Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett, and Eddie Floyd and Johnny Lang working at a phone sex operation. The superstar appearances continue with the likes of James Brown, Sam Moore, Paul Shaffer, Blues Traveler and Erykah Badu.The musical renditions come to a climax when The Louisiana Gator Boys take the stage, featuring King, Bo Diddley, Eric Clapton, Lou Rawls, Koko Taylor, Jimmy Vaughn, Isaac Hayes and Steve Winwood, just to name a few. For any blues fan, this is a must see. The movie itself is entertaining, with several humorous moments spread throughout the adventure. Another key element that was kept from the original ‘Blues Brothers’ was the car chases between the boys and the long-arm of the law. The chases were the catalyst in the majority of the hijinks throughout the flick.The movie as a whole can be summed up by stating ‘Blues Brothers 2000’ is a decent movie made better by the musical performances.