Overview
In the big scheme of things, we’re presented with obstacles we must overcome constantly. Whether it is getting and keeping a second job just to get the bills paid or asking out Maria in your Biology class, we deal with these obstacles on an every day basis. It’s how we deal with these obstacles that make us who we are.

Jimmy Smith Jr. (Eminem) needs to break out of the death grip that has bound him. Jimmy is a white rapper that is trying to make the transition from street rapping to recording the elusive demo he seeks so dearly. The demo is his only way out of crime ridden Detroit, out of his neighborhood located in and around 8 Mile Road, which divides the entire city between upper class and lower class, suburban and urban, black and white, and essentially, life and death.

Jimmy has surrounded himself with a dynamic group of care free, light-hearted, loyal friends. Jimmy has what is easily a more diverse gang of friends since Billy the Kid’s in Young Guns I and II. Cheddar Bob (Evan Jones) is easily the most lovable of all the characters. Sol George (Omar Benson Miller) is Jimmy’s “biggest” supporter, while wannabe agent Wink (Eugene Byrd) isn’t quite part of the group, yet at the same time he is. Every group needs to have a smart guy, and DJ Iz (De'Angelo Wilson) plays the role of the brainy activist extremely well. To round out the group, Jimmy’s mentor and good friend, Future, supports him when times get the toughest for him. Jimmy and his posse all cling to the hope of them hitting it big, which keeps them all going through the day to day blah we all must endure. They are active participants in their dream, combating at night with each other and Detroit’s best rappers with their words, trying to outwit and out rap each other, perfecting their craft.
Their will alone will determine whether they achieve their dreams…or if their dreams are shattered.

Review
Eminem plays the role of Jimmy Smith Jr. in his feature film debut, a down on his luck, poor, talented and aspiring rapper who lives with his mother and sister in a trailer park on Detroit's 8 Mile Rd. 8 Mile is a divide between urban and suburban, black and white, what is and what can be.

Jimmy, also known as Bunny Rabbit, recently broke up with his girlfriend, Janeane, (Taryn Manning) and is forced to move back into the trailer park with his unemployed mother and little sister. Rabbit works at a steel mill so he can save up enough money to record a demo, which he believes will get him out of the ghetto and put him on the road to success and happiness. At night he hits the Shelter, an underground hip-hop club that his friend and mentor, Future, MCs. Rap Battles take place each night, which are rounds that last 45 seconds in which you are to rip your opponent to shreds with your words. The wittiest, quickest, and cleverest are the ones that survive and make it to the next round. The ones that don’t must endure the vicious crowd, listening to them laughing and harassing you until the next battle.

Despite a boatload of support from his fans and his friends, Rabbit has a case of stage fright and can’t get the words to come out of his mouth when it is his turn. As time progresses, he realizes that in order to cut his demo and make money to get out of Detroit, he needs to come up big in the rap battles. Rabbit has to look deep inside himself and find himself, his voice, and realize he needs to make the most out of his chances. As Eminem says in his hit single ‘Lose Yourself’, “Success is my only mother-fucking option, failure’s not…”. Once he realizes this, Rabbit goes through a transformation that viewers will be sure to remember long after the credits roll.

Eminem summarizes what the movie is about in the first two verses of this single:

“Look, if you had one shot, one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted-One moment
Would you capture it or just let it slip?

His palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy
There's vomit on his sweater already, mom's spaghetti
He's nervous, but on the surface he looks calm and ready
To drop bombs, but he keeps on forgettin
What he wrote down, the whole crowd goes so loud
He opens his mouth, but the words won't come out
He's chokin, how everybody's jokin now
The clock's run out, time's up over, blouww!
Snap back to reality, Oh there goes gravity
Oh, there goes Rabbit, he choked
He's so mad, but he won't give up that
easy? No
He won't have it, he knows his whole back city's ropes
It don't matter, he's dope
He knows that, but he's broke
He's so stacked that he knows
When he goes back to his mobile home, that's when it's
Back to the lab again yo
This whole rhapsody
He better go capture this moment and hope it don't pass him”

This isn’t the only hit on the soundtrack, which features songs by Obie Trice and 50 Cent, which are tight. The soundtrack is definitely worth buying, as you can read from my good buddy Ramz in his review of the 8 mile soundtrack.

Acting
Eminem’s acting debut shows that he may be just more than a white boy that can rap: he’s also a white boy that can act. I came into this movie with a lot of doubt that he would present his audience with much more than some witty rhymes and fight scenes, but Em surprised me and a lot of other people. Eminem serves up a stellar performance as he plays the role of Jimmy Smith, Jr., aka Bunny Rabbit, who by day is a steel mill worker, and by night is a battle rapper trying to make it big. Eminem wears his heart on his sleeve during this performance, showing his softer side and his emotions, while at the same time, remaining a strong individual. He’s a family man, a friend you know you can count on, and someone that inspires others. If you just expect him to rap and give a sub-par acting performance, you’ll be disappointed.

Brittany Murphy is fantastic as she plays the role of Alex, an aspiring model, who befriends Eminem. She looks up to him, impressed that he is doing what he can to achieve his dream. Her dream is to break out of Detroit to get to New York and become a model. Her character is believable, since its not to hard to believe that she would go and do certain things during the course of the film. Either way, it was a fairly strong performance from her and I came away thinking that she did very well, but a million miles from an Oscar nominating performance.

Having not seen her in many films as of late, I was very curious to see how Kim Basinger would perform as Jimmy’s drunken unemployed mom who lives in the trailer park with Jimmy’s little sister, as well as her boyfriend who Jimmy went to high school with. I won’t say I was overly impressed, because I thought she could have done a bit more to be believable in the role. Her fake southern drawl didn’t add to the performance at all, in fact, I think it distracted me from paying attention to the good things she was doing. She plays a fairly big role in the movie, so you should expect more from her, but I was disappointed and question whether she was the right person for the role.

Mekhi Phifer is brilliant as Rabbit's mentor known as Future. He offers up a very natural and solid performance and I was extremely impressed with his acting in this film. I kind of had the feeling that Eminem fed off of Phifer, and by having a strong support actor by his side, it made Eminem that much better. Phifer didn’t look like he was out of place at all, he looked like he was born into that role, and I applaud the casting crew for seeking him out and picking him as Em’s sidekick.

Directing
I was happy to hear that Curtis Hanson was chosen as the Director for this film, because of past movies he has directed that have made it into my DVD collection (The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, River Wild). Hanson is most noted for directing a movie that was nominated for Best Supporting Actress (Kim Basinger, who went on to win), Best Director (Hanson was competing with James Cameron for Titanic for this Oscar), Best Picture, Best Original Dramatic Score, Best Film Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction/Set Direction, Best Sound, and Best Adapted Screenplay (which is a category they won), all for the cult classic drama L.A. Confidential. Had Titanic been released in 1998, L.A. Confidential would have won probably 4 or 5 more Oscars; however, once in a while you have a film (Titanic) that comes along and sweeps up all of the Oscars and rightfully so, if that film is deserving of them.

Is 8 Mile Oscar worthy? Possibly. I don’t think Eminem will win one for Best Actor, or Brittany Murphy will win one for Best Actress, but I think it has a good chance winning one in Best Original Song, and possibly even Best Original Screenplay. If you want to see Eminem win awards for 8 Mile make sure you tune in to the MTV Movie Awards, as I’m sure he’ll eat up his competition.

Hanson did a great job using each actor’s and actresses’ strengths to their best abilities and focusing on those to put together a story that is easy to follow and is believable at the same time. I always hear people saying that the writing, done by Scott Silver, is weak, but what more do you expect from this film? Amazing special effects? Having Eminem save someone’s life? It’s not like that, it’s more of a pop culture point of view/documentary, and I think the writing does justice to what Eminem wants to portray. I will say that I did expect more performances (musically) from Eminem and his crew, but not having them doesn’t hurt the movie or the message behind it. The end leaves you wondering a bit, but not to the point where you are confused or frustrated. It leaves you with a good feeling about the film, and the fact that you shelled out $8.50 to see the flick as well.


Final Thoughts
8 Mile is a must see movie for people that both love and hate Eminem as a rap artist. The message of the movie is clear and concise from the get go, and it’s something that we can all relate to. The cameos and rap battles alone are worth seeing the film…just try to keep your ears open, as they tend to be quick tongued with their rhymes. I’m very much looking forward to seeing Eminem act in the future.

HYNDSY Rating: 4 out of 5 Planets


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