I'll get this out of the way right up front: I am not a fan of Eminem.
It's nothing against the man himself or the content of his lyrics, which is
an understandable bone of contention with many others. Quite simply, I don't
think much of his music. Repeated radio play of his music is bad enough.
Watching a two-hour film starring him, with a script loosely based on his
life, didn't hold much promise either.
Yet in the hands of Curtis Hanson, the talented filmmaker responsible for
two of the best Hollywood films in the past decade, LA Confidential
and Wonder Boys, my fears began to subside. 8 Mile, a
combination of Rocky and Purple Rain set in the hip-hop world of the mid
'90s, is a winner.
Scott Silver's screenplay is pretty straightforward: Mr E plays Jimmy
"Rabbit" Smith, Jr, a young white male in his twenties who lives in the titular
section of Detroit. The name 8 Mile represents the divide between blacks and
whites, rich and poor as well as the psychological boundary that divides and
challenges Jimmy's dream of becoming a rap artist. His biggest problem isn't
dealing with his alcoholic, white trash mother (Kim Basinger), his on and
off romance with a local gal named Alex (Brittany Murphy), the dead-end job
in an auto parts factory or even a competing rapper at the local contests,
Popa Doc (Anthony Mackie). His biggest problem is overcoming his fear of
failure and realizing his potential as an artist.
As he did with his two previous films, Hanson does a great job immersing
the viewer into the film's characters and the world they inhabit. Hanson and
cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto (Frida) perfectly capture the
bleakness of the Detroit neighborhood and the excitement and raw energy of
the underground hip-hop scene. Hanson takes Silver's screenplay, elevates it
above its mildly predictable level and explores with great detail the
racial, cultural and economic factors that contributed to hip-hop's origins
and continue to influence and inspire many of the genre's artists.
There is a great level of intensity and energy to Eminem's screen debut,
a performance reminiscent in many ways of James Dean or even John Travolta
from Saturday Night Fever. Mr. E never goes over the top; he develops
great chemistry with the other cast members and shows that he can deliver a
line of dialogue with conviction and believability. I'm not sure if its
Oscar material, but it's without doubt one hell of a debut.
Excellent support is provided from Basinger, Murphy and Mekhi Phifer as
Future, the friend who believes in Jimmy and refuses to give up hope on
seeing him break into the big time. Omar Benson Miller, De'Angelo Wilson and
Evan Jones are also great as Rabbit's support team (and the film's welcome
comic relief).
8 Mile may not have converted me into an Eminem fan, but it has
made me do two things I thought I would never do: cut him some slack and
give him some well-deserved credit, at least on his acting ability. We'll
have to wait to see if he can play something other than a variation of
himself, but here and now, both Eminem and 8 Mile deliver.
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