8 Mile (2002)

Director:

Curtis Hanson

Writer (WGA):

Scott Silver (written by)

Release Date:

8 November 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Music

Tagline:

Go back to where it all started.

Plot:

A young rapper, struggling with every aspect of his life, wants to make the most of what could be his final opportunity but his problems around gives him doubts.

Plot Keywords:

Rap | Friend | Car Trouble | Lunch Wagon | Paintball Gun

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 8 wins & 18 nominations

Cast

Eminem	...	Jimmy 'B-Rabbit' Smith
Kim Basinger	...	Stephanie Smith
Mekhi Phifer	...	David 'Future' Porter
Brittany Murphy	...	Alex
Evan Jones	...	Cheddar Bob
Omar Benson Miller	...	Sol George
De'Angelo Wilson	...	DJ Iz
Eugene Byrd	...	Wink
Taryn Manning	...	Janeane
Larry Hudson	...	Bouncer
Proof	...	Lil' Tic
Mike Bell	...	Shorty Mike
DJ Head	...	Battle DJ
Michael Shannon	...	Greg Buehl
Chloe Greenfield	...	Lily Smith

Also Known As:

8 Mile (Germany)
8 Mile - Jeder Augenblick ist eine neue Chance (Germany) (DVD box title)
Fight Music (USA) (working title)
Fight Song (USA) (working title)
Untitled Detroit Project (USA) (working title)
8 Mile (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Восьмая миля (Russia) [ru]
8 Mile (Finland) [fi]
8 Mile (Finland: Swedish title) [sv]
8 Mile (Greece) [el]
8 Mile (Portugal) [pt]
8 Mile (Denmark) [da]
8 Mile - Rua das Ilusões (Brazil) [pt]
8 Mile: Calle de ilusiones (Argentina) [es]
8 mérföld (Hungary) [hu]
8 mil (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
8 millas (Spain) [es]
8. mila (Poland) [pl]
Calle de las ilusiones (Chile) [es]
Rua das Ilusões (Brazil) [pt]

MPAA:

Rated R for strong language, sexuality, some violence and drug use.

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Zurich) | USA:R (certificate #39361) | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Taiwan:R-18 | Philippines:R-18 | Hungary:18 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Brazil:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-15 | France:U | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Iceland:14 | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM14 | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:R13 (re-rating) | New Zealand:R16 (original rating) | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:NC-16 (edited for re-rating) | Singapore:R(A) (original rating) | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of the Grisons) | UK:15 | Singapore:M18 (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

Chin Tiki Club - 2121 Cass Avenue, Detroit, Michigan, USA

Company:

Imagine Entertainment

Trivia:

Quentin Tarantino, Alan Parker, Danny Boyle and Stephen Daldry were all considered to direct. Tarantino reluctantly declined as he was in the middle of production for Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) and Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004).

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Set in 1995, later model cars are seen driving by in many scenes.

Quotes:

B. Rabbit: [whispering to Sol after winning a battle] Yo, that 'Leave it to Beaver' line almost killed me.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Buppha Rahtree (2003)

Soundtrack:

Runnin'

Good, but nowhere near perfect

8 Mile tells the story of a white kid on the wrong side of the tracks living in Detroit with a dead end job and a trailer park mom. Deep inside, he aspires to break free from the chains of the reality of his life through the poetry and passion and rawness of rap; the one place he can possibly gain a feeling of purpose and hear his own voice. Obviously, it's no big secret that this storyline runs very parallel to that of of Eminem's own roots and his own aspirations. Where fiction and reality collide is blurred and that works for the picture. First off, I think Curtis Hanson did a great job rebuilding that world and protecting his novice lead. He understood the material and I was drawn in to the world that he recreated. Also, the cinematography widely lends itself towards upping the ante of the picture and making you feel the authenticity of a world and a place where many of us have never traveled nor never will. As for Eminem himself, at first I found him a little stoic, but given the fact that this guy has never acted before, regardless of how 'autobiographical' the material may be, I thought he did a decent job in front of the camera. Hanson was wise to protect his lead with awesome supporting work from Mekhi Phifer and pretty much everyone else that portrays his friends and peers in the film. Eminem obviously was a little green and surrounding him with these actors gave the movie and Eminem's journey more credence. Brittany Murphy was also very good, but I found her character to be a bit expedient. She definitely was not used to her full potential and I felt that if they had used her relationship with Rabbit to a larger or deeper extent, it only would have lent more to the film. One of the scenes I was most impressed with was the sex scene between Murphy and Eminem. Gone were the Hollywood antics of glossing it up or ghetto fabulous and I felt that Hanson captured something that was fascinating, uncomfortable and realistic that I haven't seen in a Hollywood film before.

Now for what I feel made this movie not rise to the top... First off, when Kim Basinger first came on the screen and opened her mouth, I thought the rest of the film was going to be destined for failure. Not only was she weak in the role, she was grossly miscast. There are so many actresses in that age range that I find it mind boggling that Basinger was used for something in which she stood out like a fish out of water. The film also almost lost me in the beginning due to the length of the first scene in the bathroom when Eminem is psyching himself up. The placement of the scene wasn't a problem but it went on way too long - I would have prepared an edited down version. If you're watching Robert DeNiro for that long looking in a mirror, yes, it'll probably work, but to put that type of pressure on a first timer with no training, especially since it's shortly followed by Basinger's first scene was a risky move and one that I think they could have found a better choice for. The other thing that kept this film from being a totally strong film for me was the screenplay itself. I kept finding myself asking why the hell Scott Silver had some of these extraneous scenes in the story. There was a good story to be told here and a whole world to be explored by the general public that doesn't know that much of it, and the script and film could have and should have been a good 25 minutes shorter and tighter.

Anyway, still an intriguing film. And interesting insight into a different side of life and I commend Eminem for taking the risk. It's a lot to bite off and half the country is just dying for a chance to decimate him. If for nothing else, this film is worth the last 5 minutes. When he was up there battling, I actually started clapping and cheering out loud in the theater - no matter where he stands as an actor, when he's in his domain, he is fantastic, whether you like what he's saying or not.

A 7 out of 10 for a movie that was actually worth spending a budget on. Not perfect, but definitely it's own thing with some good moments. And when they're good, they're really good.