Paul Greenwood reviews

• Cert:
• Running time: 110 minutes
• Year: 2002
• Released: 17th January 2003
• Widescreen Ratio: 2.35:1
• Rating: 8/10

Director:

Curtis Hanson (LA Confidential, Wonder Boys)

Cast:

Jimmy ‘Rabbit’ Smith: Eminem
Stephanie Smith: Kim Basinger
Alex: Brittany Murphy
Future: Mekhi Phifer
Cheddar Bob: Evan Jones
Lily: Chloe Greenfield
Sol George: Omar Benson Miller
DJ Iz: De'Angelo Wilson

This is a film good enough to make me change the musical habits of a lifetime and start listening to rap. I haven’t quite been brave enough to take the plunge yet, but one day soon I’ll get around to buying the Eminem CD that will fit nicely into my collection between The Eagles and Fairport Convention.

It was my dislike of this particular kind of music that was making me dread 8 Mile, so heavily does it feature. Not only does it star the aforementioned Marshall Mathers as Jimmy ’Rabbit’ Smith, but the entire plot revolves around the performing of it.

Rabbit is a young man living in a poor area of Detroit and, when we meet him, he’s about to go on stage at a local club and have a ‘battle’ against an opponent – the two of them taking it in turns to perform an improvised rap for 45 seconds with the best going on to the next round of the contest. But Rabbit chokes and is laughed off the stage.

This is only one of his problems though: he’s just split up with his girlfriend, he’s living in a trailer with his uncaring mother and he hates his job at a pressing factory. He dreams to escape it all and he sees his rapping skills at his outlet, but first he must overcome his stage fright as well as survive everyday life in a dangerous neighbourhood.

The story is a simple and oft-told one, most recognisably as Rocky, but that doesn’t really matter. What’s important is the emotion and conviction with which it’s told. The greatest bonus probably lies with having a director of the calibre of Curtis Hanson at the helm. The established formula for a movie of this type would have seen a music video director making his feature film debut and giving us a hyper-edited, phony mess. Hanson grounds it firmly in reality and keeps it naturalistic with the aid of a stunning drab grey look that really won’t do much for tourism in Michigan.

The performances are also vital to the success of 8 Mile, from Kim Basinger’s white trash mother to Evan Jones as Rabbit’s dim but insightful pal, Cheddar Bob. It’s Eminem himself though who truly impresses. His hip-hop credentials were obviously never in doubt but the strength of his dramatic performance is remarkable, particularly considering this is his first film.

The rap battle scenes pulsate with energy and passion but in between all the bitching and motherfucking lies a poetry I didn’t know existed. If Eminem and similar artists really can make up lines of rap on the spot for minutes at a time, then I stand in awe of them.

Review copyright © Paul Greenwood, 2003.