8 Mile
The critics have spoken. 8 Mile is "gritty." It's a "hip-hop Rocky." And Eminem has the same "charismatic presence as James Dean."
I beg to differ on all three accounts, but we'll get to that soon enough. "8 Mile," directed by Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential, Wonder Boys), chronicles a week in the life of "Rabbit" (Eminem), a down-on-his-luck Detroit rapper. In the opening scene, Rabbit faces off in a hip-hop battle mediated by "Future" (the excellent Mekhi Phifer). Alas, faced with a taunting, all-black crowd, Rabbit can't bring himself to rap and walks off stage to a barrage of boos and mockery.
If that's not bad enough, his Mom (Kim Basinger) is sleeping with an annoying redneck guy he went to high school with, his car doesn't work, his boss doesn't like him, he just broke up with his girlfriend, and he has to deal with the mockery of everyone who saw him "choke" at the battle.
Fortunately, Rabbit has the support of a small but loyal group of friends, and a leggy young lady (Brittany Murphy) who enters his life seems promising. Can Rabbit overcome the obstacles in his path and triumph? Specifically, can he break through his wall of fear and emerge victorious from the next hip-hop battle?
Now, let's debunk a few myths about this film:
A hip-hop Rocky? Nah. 8 Mile and Rocky aren't even in the same ballpark. Every aspect of Rocky -- the acting, writing and direction -- were far superior. The result was an authenticity and unpredictability that 8 Mile lacks.
Gritty? Compared to other urban fare such as Menace II Society and Clockers (which stars Phifer, check it out), 8 Mile looks downright tame. The casting of glamorous Kim Basinger as redneck trailer trash doesn't help. Basinger tries gamely, but Hanson's decision to introduce her naked and in the throes of sex undercuts the film's sense of realism. Is this how 40-year-old trailer trash moms really look? Didn't think so.
Eminem as the next James Dean? Let's not get carried away. Sure, Eminem does a solid, respectable job of essentially playing himself. It's a good, promising start, but you can rest assured that in 50 years they won't be comparing 8 Mile to Rebel Without a Cause. And something about the way the film tries so hard to make Rabbit such a great guy seems forced. See Eminem stand up for a gay guy! See Eminem help his poor mother! See Eminem sing a lullaby to his little sister (starting to get queasy now...)!
Of course, Em can rap with the best of them ("Lose Yourself" is his latest classic), and the scenes where he tosses off some rhymes are the film's best. A particularly memorable sequence features Em and Phifer improvising some lyrics to the music of "Sweet Home Alabama." Hilarious.
The directing and cinematography are disappointingly pedestrian, though, especially given Hanson's pedigree. With the notable exception of a few scenes -- a downbeat Eminem riding the bus, Em furiously scratching down lyrics in his trailer home -- 8 Mile lacks the powerful imagery you'd expect from a highly touted urban drama.
Hype aside, 8 Mile is a moderately enjoyable, entertaining drama with an interesting debut performance by Eminem. As long as you go into it with modest expectations -- and not expecting the Oscar-worthy, landmark flick that some critics are cracking it up to be -- you'll probably have a good time with it.
Send any comments/ feedback to the author.
There's some damage to be done here.
The women is this film are aren't real likeable, and the Eminem/Brittany Murphy relationship is mostly physical.
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