8 Mile (2002)

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.

Director:

Curtis Hanson

Writer:

Scott Silver

Stars:

Eminem, Kim Basinger, Mekhi Phifer

Won 1 Oscar. Another 8 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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

Storyline

A rap version of "Saturday Night Fever." B-Rabbit, a wannabe rapper from the wrong side of Detroit's 8 Mile, has problems: he dumps his girlfriend when she tells him she's pregnant; to save money to make a demo tape, he moves into his alcoholic mom's trailer; his job's a dead end, and he's just choked at the local head-to-head rap contest. Things improve when he meets Alex - an aspiring model headed for New York - and a fast-talking pal promises to set up the demo. Then new setbacks: Alex isn't faithful, mom rejects him, rifts surface with his friends, and he's mugged by rivals. Everything hinges on the next rap showdown at the club. Can B-Rabbit pull truth out of his cap?

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Plot Keywords:

contest | friend | model | gun | single mother | 

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Taglines:

Every moment is another chance.

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Genres:

Drama | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

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

Details

Official Sites:

Universal Pictures [us]

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 November 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fight Music

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$41,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$635,354 (Japan) (30 May 2003)

Gross:

$5,240,354 (Japan) (4 July 2003)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Imagine Entertainment, Mikona Productions GmbH & Co. KG

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the last battle against Papa Doc, Rabbit says, "...he's shook 'cause ain't such thing as halfway crooks." This is a reference to the instrumental playing in the background which is taken from the rap duo Mobb Deep's "Shook Ones Pt. II", in which the chorus is "There ain't no such thing as half-way crooks, scared to death, they scared to look, they shook..." The same song was playing in the opening scene of the film, where Jimmy is practicing in the bathroom.

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Goofs

In the first battle, the DJ is playing the instrumental of "The Next Level (remix)" by Show + AG, which was released on PayDay records. The records shown on the decks aren't on PayDay records. In addition to this, the DJ is using the same records in the end battle (where a different track is being played).

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Quotes

Alex: [to Jimmy] So how come they call you rabbit?
Future: Cause he's fast and he likes to fuck a lot.

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Crazy Credits

The final credit reads, "Filmed on location in the 313"

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Connections

Featured in The 83rd Annual Academy Awards (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Feel Me Flow"
Naughty By Nature Sampled "Find Yourself"
Written by Joseph Modeliste(as Joseph Modeliste, Jr.), George Porter (as George Joseph Porter, Jr.), Art Neville(as Arthur Lanon Neville) and Leo Nocentelli
Performed by The Meters

User Reviews

Excellent Drama

I don't care for too many dramas, but "8 mile" was an excellent movie. Eminem was a better actor than I could have dreamed for him to be. He put on a great show, and kept me interested throughout the entire movie. Mekhi Phifer did an excellent job and is definitely a rising star in Hollywood. Brittany Murphy could have done a better job, but I didn't like her character development at all. It seems that she flip flops around so much that in the end you really don't know which side she truly plays. Kim Basinger did a good job. I don't watch too many of her movies. The last movie I saw of hers' was "Bless the Child" and that was a major let down.

As for the plot, don't go into the movie thinking that you're going to see the life of Eminem. This is not about Eminem's life. Eminem said it himself in an interview. Mekhi Phifer even said that he didn't want to do the movie because he thought it was about Eminem's life and that Hollywood was just trying to take advantage of a rising star, but this isn't the case. This is just as any other movie, but this is Eminem's acting debut. Even though there are certain things in the movie that relate to Eminem's life (ex. 8 Mile Road,) this is certainly NOT an autobiography.

If you go into "8 mile" expecting to see an action film with explosions and such then you're in for a let down. "8 Mile" is an amazing story about a white wannabe rapper trying to make it in the underground world of rapping. There isn't much action in this at all because it is a DRAMA, not an action. I hope you go see this movie if your in for a good story with some great characters!