This is the true power of hip-hop!

Rating: Null/10 (9 March 2003)

Listen close, my friends, as I'm telling you this, and bear in mind that this is coming to you from a man who's absolutely NOT into rap music - 8 Mile is very, VERY good. First, it's got great drive. Watching it, you can't help going with it the same way you can't resist nodding your head when you hear some thick & powerful beat coming from the speakers. The story of a young white rapper's struggles is gritty enough yet the filmmakers have enough taste to not push it too far & keep it firmly in believable territory. Yes, I should mention that both Kim Basinger & Brittany Murphy don't really have much to play, and as a result they look rather poorly - but that's understandable since the real star of the film is Eminem and his rapping skills. And Eminem delivers powerfully & thrillingly. He really has what it takes to be a film star - it's great to watch him even when he does nothing special, just riding a bus looking out of a window. The freestyle battles are just brilliant - it's impossible to take your eyes off the screen (though I really should mention that I could understand very little in what those guys were saying). Since I enjoyed it so much not being a rap fan, I have only one questions - how do fans of Eminem survive this film without dying of pleasure overload?