Perfectly watchable-but not brilliant

Rating: Null/10 (4 February 2003)

STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All Costs
8 Mile is controversial Detroit rapper Eminem's eagerly anticipated acting debut.It was probably a good idea for his first time in front of the camera to stick to material relatively close to home and appear in a movie that is more-or-less semi-autobiographical.Does he pull it off?Yes,he more than passes muster.Being his first time,he hasn't quite mastered a naturalness that he would need to develop in order to be considered a truly amazing acting force,but he certainly tries very hard and carries himself very powerfully.The rest of the main cast,Kim Basinger,Mekki Phyiffer and Brittany Murphy,however,turn in merely adequate,passable performances which are less acceptable for more experienced actors.It doesn't help much that they are given such contrieved,unoriginal dialogue to work with,though.The film's other real fault is that the story has no real sense of structure or coherence.Although the central character and the situations and people he becomes involved with are very engaging,there's no real actual plot to follow and this ends up becoming quite a distracting hinderance.A good recommendation about the film however,is that it really comes alive towards the end,making you just able to care about the end outcome.The rapping sequences are great fun to watch too,watching the characters spurt out catchy,bouncing tunes that get lodged in your head,especially during the 'choking' scenes.Although this doesn't quite match up to director Curtis Hanson's original movie L.A. Confidential,it is easily on a par with his last film,Wonder Boys.***