I would avoid reading the critical review b4 u see the film

Rating: Null/10 (15 February 2003)

I went to watch this movie (after strong, long, repetitive and persuasive enough arguments with my friends) on the first day of its release. We arrived at the cinema 30 minutes earlier but even then the cue was unexpectedly long. People seemed to be cuing forever in the rain waiting to issue their ticket, which, all of a sudden, seemed amazingly precious to everyone. As I joined the huge cue, I glanced at the crowd. People with baggy jeans and T-shirts, baseball hats and/or hoods, funky (to me) ghetto jewelry and trainers. I wondered what was I doing there. This seemed to be a specific film for a specific audience. But as I watched the crowd more carefully I also saw people that were less familiar with the hip hop or rap life style and attitude. I was getting more and more puzzled and intrigued as a few guys at the back of the cue were actually `rapping' some of Eminem's lyrics.
I was quite unsure about Eminem's debut in the cinema business. Great singers with huge success in the music industry, having sold billions of records worldwide proved to be quite unsuccessful on their attempt in the big screen. One could significantly mention names like Mariah Carey in `Glitter', Britney Spears in `Crossroads', Jennifer Lopez in `Enough' and even Madonna in `God only knows which one to mention first'. How Eminem's attempt could be different from all the previous attempts?

The answer to the question above is not very complicated. `8 mile' is a movie about life in Detroit in the late 80's. Focused mostly on how young people lived in that area, we watch the straggle of a young white rapper (Jimmy a.k.a. Eminem or vice versa-since the story strongly resembles some biographical elements of Eminem's life) to be recognized in a world dominated by black people.
`8 Mile', however, is not, under any circumstance, Eminem's personal story. Some biographical elements are obvious and inevitable (Eminem is indeed a white rapper in a music industry in which the vast majority is represented by black people), but Eminem is not selling out his personal, private and unquestionably strange, eccentric and therefore `catchy' story of his life (the father that never known, the mother and wife he hates, a beloved daughter and a single parenthood carried out by a man, and finally one of the top places in rap music in the world).
Jimmy lives in a world that more or less works like a social ghetto. The majority of people live their lives from week to week, working double shifts and given low salaries. Most of the characters that surround Jimmy have given up any hope for a better life. They just `hung around' letting things happen to them rather than doing things.
Jimmy's family status is a sufficient example of this particular way of living. His mother (Kim Basinger a.k.a. Stephanie) is a divorced woman having spent most of her life in a trailer with her little daughter. She has reposed every hope for a better life to earnings from bingo and to her much younger lover who lives like a parasite in the family, waiting for his disability payment check to come. Her desperation, instead of leading her to do something drastic about her life, is making her more idle and pathetic.

However, there are people who want to make a difference and pursue their dream. Brittany Murphy (a.k.a. Alex) wants to escape from the strict closure perimeter of 8 mile. Although she fells in love with Jimmy, she wouldn't hesitate to sleep with an other man in order to promote her career. In this case, her desperation is leading her to become more energetic and drastic about her life but she loses her self-integrity and respect in order to reach her goals.
In a society that almost everyone acts and reacts in such a way, Jimmy stands out. Not because of his colour. He is a young man with dreams, who gives his personal fight not only to achieve his goals but he also tries to overcome his personal fears, doubts and societal norms. Self-actualization is presented as Jimmy's main objective. Neither success, nor money is of his primal attention. He just wants to escape from this way of living, alter his life. Jimmy represents every young person that wants to believe in himself and his abilities in order to fulfill his dreams.
However, this seems that it was concerned to be an unimportant factor to the movie rating councils in many countries (including Greece). The members of the Classification and Rating Administration (CARA) believed that it would be beneficial to rate the movie with an R certificate making it inappropriate for people under 18 years old (and in some cases 21 years -depending the laws and regulations of each country). It has been often noticed that critics and members of the rating council persist to focus only to the obvious events of a film and they don't try to understand what the movie is all about. In most of the cases, the majority of the audience would identify with Jimmy, the most positive character in the film. Jimmy stands out as a role model. He's not doing drugs, he is committed on what he believes and he reaches his goal only when he believes in his self and in his abilities. Moreover, he achieves his objectives with a decent, self-respecting way. This could be taken in account as a positive message for young audience. We have to admit that he uses strong language, gets into trouble, he falls in love and has sex, but then again who doesn't? Eminem represents the courage and the inner self power to stand up to what one believes and dreams of in a city that seems to be on a lethargy under the societal norms and a pathetic and pessimistic view of the future which is restricted just on a 8 mile road. Additionally, Eminem's role seems to be even more `gay friendly' in comparison with his homophobic, up to a point, past song lyrics. Therefore, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to suggest that the rating was wrongfully put in an R level.
To conclude, we could mention that the performance on the main roles is more that satisfactory. Kim Basinger neglects and reverses all her previous `femme fatale ` roles as she appears in a less charming but powerful and not `shallow' role. Additionally, Eminem gives, to many people's surprise, a good and persuasive performance. Besides, he does what he knows to do best: be an innovative musician and one of the best rappers in the music industry. Finally, director Curtis Hanson, gives a realistic view in Detroit of 80's and creates in a far more than a successful way a music documentary of rap and hip hop music which could be described as a significant contribution to the history of music. Not to mention that the soundtrack has been nominated for an Oscar Award.