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No
matter where we live, no matter who we are, we're all bound by borders
... some real, some imagined. Many of us are content to live within
these borders. Others are forced to. But some of us need to break
out, burst through, even if what lies on the other side is both
frightening and unknown. 8 Mile is a story about these boundaries
that define our lives, and a young man's struggle to find the strength
and courage to transcend them.
The
people of Detroit know 8 Mile as the city limit, a border, a boundary.
It is also a psychological dividing line that separates Jimmy Smith
Jr. (Eminem) from where and who he wants to be. "8 Mile"
is a provocative fictional examination of a critical week in Jimmy’s
life, starring multi-platinum recording artist Eminem in his first
leading role in a feature film, along with Kim Basinger ("L.A.
Confidential") as Jimmy’s mother, Mekhi Phifer ("O,"
"Shaft"), Brittany Murphy ("Don’t Say A Word")
and Eugene Byrd ("Dead Man").
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Mile's protagonist, Jimmy Smith, aka Bunny Rabbit, isn't just Eminem,
although Bunny does mirror Eminem in many ways-I don't think the film
is autobiographical, though. Bunny Rabbit represents every MC who's
worked his or her butt off in freestyle battles to make it, to gain
the respect of their peers, and hip-hop heads. Unfortunately, many
of those MCs used battling as a means to an end, as opposed to it
being an end in itself. These are the ones who measure success with
dollar signs, but in 8 Mile we see a true picture of hip-hop success…
an MC who moves the crowd. And what's great about it is we do not
see an artist from the gutter making it big. After the film's climax,
Bunny Rabbit goes back to work, at the stamping plant.
8 Mile
captures the excitement, exhilaration and intensity of freestyle
battles. It takes you to that dingy, smoky spot where hungry MCs
and hip-hop enthusiasts dwell. You can feel, hear, taste and smell
it. This film will take its audience to a place where true hip-hop
lives: the underground. Most people only ever see BET and MTVs versions
of hip-hop: flashy, materialistic, pornographic. But hip-hop is
a subversive music and culture, and this film really illustrates
this. And many people will not understand the nature of battling;
it's been referred to negatively in several reviews already. Freestyle
battling isn't just about hurling insults, expletives and what have
you, at the opposing MC. It's about cleverness, creativity, competition
and having fun. It's not to be taken personally, and those on the
outside looking in will most likely misunderstand it.
Eminem
is good as Bunny Rabbit, the Detroit MC who gets booed off the stage
at the beginning of the film after being introduced by friend Future
(Mekhi Phifer) as a genius. He stands on stage speechless, staring
out at the merciless crowd in terror. He's got talent but he's afraid.
Things aren't really going that well for him. He just broke up with
his girlfriend and has nowhere else to go but back to his mother's
trailer home, where she lives with her skuzzy boyfriend, Greg, who
hates him. But Jimmy is determined to make something of himself,
determined to transcend his negative surroundings. And perhaps this
sounds somewhat cliché, but, again, it's not a film about
an incredible talent who gets discovered and subsequently gets big,
or rich. Success for Jimmy Smith is immaterial.
Jimmy
Smith works at a stamping plant during the day, and spends his evenings
driving around with his friends getting into trouble, not serious
trouble, but trouble nonetheless. They get into fights, shoot signs,
buildings and even a police car with a paint gun, burn down an abandoned
house and talk about what they are going to do when they make it
big. But Jimmy isn't interested in "making it big." He
just wants to rhyme, do something he loves, and turn things around.
Eminem
plays a caring, empathic, often tender character, and hey, maybe
this is the "real slim shady." He has a younger sister,
Lily, who adores him, and a circle of friends who are all concerned
and loving. Future is interesting. He hosts the freestyle battles
at "The Shelter" and is always talking about getting right
with the Lord. Cheddar Bob, one of Bunny's friends, is socially
inept, but Bunny accepts and genuinely cares for him. Playing this
character may not have been a huge stretch for Eminem, but he shows
talent, unlike other rap artists, whose performances are contrived
and utterly painful to watch.
Curtis
Hanson ("LA Confidential," "Wonder Boys") really
shows his versatility as a director by painting an accurate picture
of the underground hip-hop scene. I really like the gritty, almost
monochromatic appearance of this film. It looks and feels right.
And the battle scenes are the most authentic I've ever seen in a
film. I felt like I was there. They had the spontaneity and energy
of an actual battle… I wanted to get up and cheer at times.
It's
great to see films about hip-hop culture, and in the past couple
months we've seen two films that accurately examine hip-hop's polarities:
Brown Sugar, a more polished looking film, looks at the business
aspect of the genre, while 8 Mile looks at the gritty side. And
these two films may end up being two of the more important movies
about hip-hop, helping define the genre, just as films like "Wild
Style" and "Beat Street" did in their day. And I'm
not saying it's the most important, but 8 Mile is probably the best
film about hip-hop thus far, inasmuch as it is the best written,
acted, directed, shot, etc. And where Brown Sugar went wrong, charismatic
MC Mos Def gives a not-so-charismatic performance to a bunch of
stiffs in suits, 8 Mile hits the right note with Eminem performing
in a hole-in-the-wall club to a raucous crowd of hip-hoppers.
Whether
or not you like Eminem, or his music, is irrelevant. This isn't
a film about "Eminem," although there are many parallels
between him and his character--freestyle battling is how he initially
made a name for himself. Eminem is offensive to a lot of people,
and I'm sure this will hinder them from checking this film out,
and this is unfortunate, because 8 Mile shows that no matter who
you are, or where you're from, you can turn things around.
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Review
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