The great thing about “8 Mile,” the new film loosely based on the life of rapper Eminem, is the absence of incredible success. In a movie full of malcontent characters idling in the muck of life while their dreams escape them every day, a sudden attainment of their fantasies would seem false. I know this is ironic given that Eminem did rocket through the stratosphere of the music world, but in terms of allowing movie audiences to identify with the characters, the climax should be (and is) understated.”8 Mile” is about finding a way out of limbo, not about finding fame and riches.
In the movie Jimmy Smith Jr. (Eminem), who goes by the nickname Rabbit, is a morose factory worker. Rabbit has a talent for rapping and rhymes which he hopes will lead to a better life, but he is stuck dreaming in a depressed life that seems hopeless. At the beginning of the film we see him freeze at a weekly rap contest called the “Battles,” which is like a dueling freeform poetry slam with insults. His failure to demonstrate, on a public level, the talent others see in him makes him fall further into despair.
Compounding upon this is his recent break-up with his pregnant girlfriend (Brittany Murphy) and his dysfunctional relationship with his mother (Kim Basinger). Rabbit is at a low point in a life that doesn’t have any high ones.
Eminem uses a great amount of intensity to give a very strong performance as Rabbit, but it is difficult to see him in another movie role. While it is probably not a stretch for him to get into character since the character is based on him, it does take a certain amount of talent to play yourself on screen. The question is: will this be all he’ll be able to do. Despite his achievement here, he risks giving monotonous performances if he chooses to continue his acting career.
Director Curtis Hanson (perhaps worried that his star, like other successful musicians who rush into movie roles, wouldn’t be able to act) has peppered the film with some strong performers; these actors strengthen the film, rather than just hold it up, as may have been intended.
Basinger, who won an Academy Award for her last outing for Hanson in “L.A. Confidential,” finally proves that she deserved the Oscar.
As Rabbit’s mother, she is a destitute woman who places her fate and that of her small daughter into the hands of deadbeat boyfriends. She could be crudely referred to as trailer trash, but there is a real person lying under the stereotype. She is most definitely flawed, but not entirely detestable thanks to Basinger’s understanding.
Murphy, who plays the love interest, continues to broaden her acting range in this film. After a tender and fragile performance in “Girl, Interrupted” and a showy role in last year’s “Don’t Say a Word,” Murphy finds new depth. At the beginning of the film she is simply background (a love interest because the story dictates that there be one). But as the movie unfolds, Murphy is allowed to display a complicated and impish character that has an actual role in Rabbit’s determination to rise above his lot in life.
Hanson, who seemed an odd choice as director at first, has created a nicely realized picture. After the strictly structured “L.A. Confidential” and the perfect “Wonder Boys,” Hanson also continues his display of talent, which had laid dormant until “L.A. Confidential,” which should have won Best Picture over “Titanic.”
Finally, any discussion of “8 Mile” has to include a comment on why the film, which wowed Hollywood with its blockbuster-type-opening box office, is so successful. I think the film is a reflection of a section of the American public. It is the downtrodden in this rusting Wal-Mart sprawl of a world who see themselves in the Eminem legend. In a recessed society, moviegoers need the reassurance that theirs is not the only unfulfilled life; they need to know they’re not alone. It is to them that this film speaks and perhaps they find comfort within it.