8 Mile (2002). Paradise Cinema

8 Mile
2002
USA
Director: Curtis Hanson
Cast: Eminem, Kim Basinger, Brittany Murphy

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Eminem plays Rabbit, a factory worker in early nineties Detroit. His girlfriend had left him, so he's taken his daughter back to his mom's trailer on the 8 Mile estate. His mom, played by Kim Basinger, is about to be evicted, but is pining all her hopes on an abusive, retarded alcoholic boyfriend, and won't let Rabbit get in the way.

But by night, Rabbit becomes the rapper B-Rabbit, and sometimes, when he can be coaxed into it by his posse, he takes part in battles, trading insults with Detroit's top local MCs. His friends tell him that his rhymes are the bomb, but he's nervy. He has too many responsibilities to juggle; his daughter, his job, and his mother, and a new girlfriend, played by Brittany Murphy. His life, like Detroit, seems to be crumbling around him. Yet we know he makes it out somehow.

When I heard about this project, I was intrigued for two reasons. Firstly, because having heard Eminem's characterizations on My Fault and Stan, I was sure that he'd make a perfectly able actor. And second, because of Curtis Hanson's LA Confidential and the excellent Wonder Boys. Both are complex and stylish movies with a dry humour, and in both cases, Hanson managed to coax great performances from a sometimes eccentric cast. In this respect, 8 Mile did not disappoint: Eminem's performance is confident with a charismatic screen presence, and Kim Basinger steers the right course between vulnerability and utter self absorption as Rabbit's mother. However, the story is familiar enough to anyone who has followed Eminem's career, and the script adds little to it. The direction is likewise uninspired. One scene, where Rabbit chokes at a battle, is used three times, the camera panning identically around him.

Although an enjoyable film, it is not likely to provoke repeated viewings as it is workmanlike in almost every respect. Only the performances, Eminem's particularly, manage to lift it above the mediocre. That he can carry a movie as a leading man on his debut outing is a remarkable achievement, although obviously he has yet to prove that he can play a character not based on himself.
All in all: wait for it on TV.

Buy Brittany Murphy Movies.	Buy Eminem Stuff.
RELATED LINKS http://www.8-mile.com/ http://www.imdb.com/Title?0298203 http://www.hollywood.com/movies/detail/movie/417203	Buy Kim Basinger Movies.