Home :: DVD :: Drama :: Family Life  

African American Drama
Classics
Crime & Criminals
Cult Classics
Family Life

Gay & Lesbian
General
Love & Romance
Military & War
Murder & Mayhem
Period Piece
Religion
Sports
Television
8 Mile (Widescreen Edition)

8 Mile (Widescreen Edition)

List Price: $14.98
Your Price: $11.98
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 .. 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 .. 35 >>

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: The Eminem Show
Review: 8 Mile is a good movie. I don't mean it is a good debut for a rapper-turned-actor, or it is a good movie for it's genre, I mean it is a good movie. I'm not surprised either. I've heard all kinds of word of mouth on this film, but the bottom line is that if Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential, Wonder Boys)
decided to make the film he must have seen something. Whether it was in Emeinem as an actor, or the story, whatever, it works.

Eminem plays Jimmy Smith, a poor kid from the wrong side of the tracks in Detroit. He goes by the stage name Rabbit when he is trying to rap, but he has terrible stage fright. Additionally his girlfriend dumps him and he is forced to move back into his mother's trailer. Sounds sunny doesn't it? His motivation is clear though. He doesn't want to be just another loser from the 313 (the area he grew up in). His way out is music, that's it. This isn't Hollywood.

The film is "losely" based on Eminem's real life. From listening to his CD's I can pick some of these elements out, and this is important. Eminem is good in the film. He has screen presence, but he did not find some glossy action flick (as say DMX did), or some cheesy fluff (as say Britany Spears did), to make his feature debut. No, he stayed true to his roots, a smart decision. Eminem is an angry young man. Wanna know why? See 8 Mile. It may not be entirely a true story, but the point is there. This is how Eminem, the character, was created. His real name, like Jimmy Smith, is Marshall Mathers. There is a difference. Is he shocking? Is he vulgar? Is he violent? The answer to all these questions would be yes. If this was your life I think you would be too. After all, he's not from Commonwealth.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: SMILIN' BREW .........
Review: Now, who is laughing all the way to the bank???
It's a very worthy effort from our rapper boy -potent film-making from Curtis Hanson and daring character work from Miss Basinger; but after the fuss has died down [and Oscar noms. are quite in line for this puppy] - let's nurture a career here and see if the acting chops can last past the funk and da noise!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: What a great movie!
Review: This movie is by far, one of the best movies I've ever seen. I love Eminem in the first place, but after seeing this movie and realizing that he does have a true talent both acting and rapping, I was blown away. I saw this movie on the first night it opened and the movie theater was packed. For a good reason too. Whatever the critics say about Eminem, he does have a true talent and through this movie, we see his love and passion for music. Out of a scale of 1-10, I would give this movie a 12. I highly reccommmend this movie.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Rabbit's Self-Expression and Struggle...
Review: Rabbit (Eminem) is a young rapper who has an opportunity to express himself on the stage in a rap-contest, but he chokes as he doubts his own rap skills. The insecurities and fears of being humiliated is a wall of self-denial that prevents Rabbit to reach success and happiness. In addition, he has a mother (Kim Basinger) who is emotionally neglectful and verbally abusive, which intensifies the insecurities of Rabbit. He is expressing his insecurities through rage that is expressed both verbally and physically; however, when it becomes to much for Rabbit, he has to face the music of his own insecurities. 8 mile is an entertaining film about self-expression and overcoming adversities.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: White Rabbit
Review: Eminem's performance as Jimmy/Rabbit in "8 Mile" is as auspicious and as natural and un-mannered as Diana Ross's debut in "Lady Sings the Blues." The fact that both are singers, though their music is miles apart in style, should not be a surprise to anyone though, as it takes just as much emotional awareness and guts to sell a song, as it is to give a fully realized performance on the screen. Whether or not Eminem can or wants to sustain a career as an actor remains, at this point a mystery.

The plot of "8 Mile" is very straightforward: a quick-tempered young man from the bad side of the tracks (Rabbit) has a talent not only for rapping but also for getting into trouble. He longs to make a career of his musical talent but chokes when he is asked to perform in front of an audience. Rabbit's mother (Kim Bassinger) is not available emotionally to him as she has her own problems: dealing with alcohol dependence and relationship problems.
At the outset, I thought this film was going to go the "rags to riches" route with Rabbit finding success and money only to lose the love of those closest to him as in "A Star is Born" or "Funny Girl." But the director, Curtis Hanson is too smart a cookie and too intelligent a filmmaker for that. Instead, Rabbit has a small revelation, a small turnaround, and a small success in his musical career that amounts to a less than expected catharsis on our part but a more realistic one on Rabbit's. As such, Hanson is looking for the truths in Rabbit's life not the fantasies in ours. And, more to the point...it works.
The best scenes in "8 Mile" are the sweaty, intense rap duels set in a dark, dank nightclub. I am not a fan of rap yet I felt the heat, the fervor, and the commitment of the rappers up front and in my face. Hanson sets these scenes in such a way so as to jam the rappers and their raps down our collective throats. If nothing else, this film will serve to educate/wake people up to the emotional connection and dedication that so many young people (of all races) feel for rap. There is a transcendent and spellbinding truth going on in rap that frankly I, along with many others, felt cut off from. Now, at the very least I understand.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: EMINEM IS SIKK
Review: EMINEM DOES A SIKK JOB PORTRAYING HIS CHARACTER B.RABBIT GO SEE THE MOVIE WELL WORTH ITT

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: More than I expected
Review: I was expecting more profranity in this movie, more from Brittany Murphy's character., However, I still question which part is of Eminem's life and which isn't? I find this to be great. This movie delivers a fine thing line between the real and the fake. Something that I find pleasing. I certainly don't want to watch a movie where every word, every step and every thing is predictable.
One thing I am unsure of is why Brittany Murphy's character was written into the script. The only purpose I could see for her was to include her in the final battle. She was a love interest which I suppose is best to have in a movie. Or was it so that we could see some more T&A?
Eminem did a good job of acting. While many may criticize him for only playing himself, I think he was acting. Kim Basinger, who played his mum, did a great job. We have heard the rumours of Eminem's mum, and if they are true, then the movie did her justice. Having the movie based on Eminem's life, I think movie-goers can see where he comes from when writing his lyrics.
This is a great coming of age movie, that really in the end, has a point to get across. Don't give up on your dreams. Just because you fail once does not mean you cannot carry on with it. I cannot imagine that Eminem will walk away with an Oscar but, it would not be surprising to see this as one of the best movies of the year!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Eminem on the big screen?!?
Review: I can't understand why people try to say that the film is terrible becasue there are 200+ f words, or that the rap battles are all about putting down people, or anything that is a little to harsh for their eyes and ears. This movie is an ACCURATE portrayal of what it was like to be a white male growing up on the wrong side of "8 Mile". The reason that there are 200+ f words is because that it was like in Detroit, 1995. Would you prefer to see a movie that tip-toed around all the bad things about its subject?, or would you rather have a movie that presents an accurate portrayal of, frankly, a terrible place to grow up?

I can respect the fact that people don't like swear words and all that, and thats fine-there are plenty of movies that don't have a single offensive line. However, if you see 8 Mile, know that it is going to be an intense, comical, sad, and disturbing look at what it would be like to grow up in Eminem's home town.

Eminem does a phenominal job acting in this movie, and there is nothing bad that you can say against him. Sure, people will try to say that it's so easy to just "play yourself", as Eminem supposidly does. However, do those people think that they could present such an emotional, funny, and heart-wrenching character as Eminem does for Jimmy Smith JR., even if they were only "playing themselves"?

Mekhi Phifer is magnificant in playing "Future", one of (Eminem is referred to as Rabbit in the film) Rabbit's best friends, who constantly tries to push him to use his talents in the weekly rap battles. I was suprised by the relationship that Eminem had with his mother-I thought it would be much worse- but it was some of the scenes where Rabbit lectured his mom were very powerful.

I think one part of this movie that stood out to me was the fact that I can relate many of my friends to Eminem's friends in the movie. Everyone has the bossy friend, who constantly pushes you to do more, either because that's their nature, or, like Future and Rabbit, they see something in you that they think you could use to your advantage. Everybody has a friend like the charater Sol Georger, played by Omar Benson Miller, who is a huge, smart, goofy, I'd like to say kid, but adult. Then there's the hilarious Chedder Bob, who looks up to Rabbit in almost everyway, and one of the most touching scenes in the movie is when Cheddar Bob had recently asked Rabbit what a good emcee name for him would be, and when Rabbit came to visit him after he shot himself, he called out "Emcee Bob", over his shoulder as he was leaving. The way his face lit up sense chills down my spine.

I agree that this is not a movie for most kids to see, but that completly depends on maturaty level, so it is an individual choice. Parents, I would want to take a look in to your local theater to seen how strict they are about minors getting in to R movies because I (... was able to get into 8 Mile very easily without having an adult buy tickets.

In the end, 8 Mile is a fantastic movie that sheds light on to a world that should NOT be sugar coated with love and happiness that is not there. I strongly recomend this film to anyone mature enough to view it.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: 8 Mile Goes the Distance
Review: So I assume that everyone is familiar with Eminem - a.k.a. Marshall Mathers. I'm pretty sure even someone who has been living under a rock for the last couple of years could tell you a thing or two about him. That is the power of the world's most famous/infamous rapper - the white guy you either love or hate. Well, finally he has decided to join the long line of musicians eager to give acting the ol' college try. Britney Spears did it this year, as did Mandy Moore and Beyonce Knowles. So why not Eminem too?

He wisely joined with two people who know how to make a decent movie: the director of "L.A. Confidential" and the writer of "A Beautiful Mind". With this combination, along with one of music's most popular figures of today, you can't go too wrong. And the combination is a winning one, because "8 Mile" is also a decent movie. It plays out almost like a documentary of Eminem's life, because there are so many obvious similarities: the substance-abusing mother, the younger sister who is almost identical to Eminem's real-life daughter, and the overall story of a small-town guy wanting to make it big in the rapping industry - not an easy feat for someone who is not of the same race that dominates the genre. However, not everything mirrors real life: in the film he has gone back to his natural hair color, and his character is not portrayed as a wild, gun-toting mad rapper. In fact, it's a little surprising - and pleasing - to see that his character is actually the opposite of Eminem: a quiet young man who freezes during his first on-stage performance, who sweetly sings his little sister to sleep, who actually turns out to be the most level-headed member of his posse. This right here proves that Eminem is actually a pretty good actor, because I believed that his character, Jimmy "Rabbit" Smith, was a nice guy, and I liked him.

The only complaint I had was that I thought two of the movie's actresses were miscast: Kim Basinger, as Jimmy's mother, is hard to imagine as "trailer trash"; even though her acting was good, she still wasn't all that believable. And Brittany Murphy as Alex, Jimmy's love interest, did a fine job, but there wasn't really a lot of chemistry between the two, even though there were rumors that she and Eminem had a fling during filming. In other words, I didn't care whether the two characters ended up in a relationship or not. But luckily, that wasn't the point of the movie anyway.

The rapping sequences are wonderful. They are sort of slam-rap sessions where two guys are given 45 seconds each to diss each other as much as possible to a catchy rap beat. Then after they are done, the winner is chosen based on the loudness of the audience's applause. If only wars could be fought this way. The final showdown is amazing, and is the movie's climax - not unlike all of the sports films about underdog teams, where the final scene is the big game: you think you may already know the outcome, but how is it going to be executed?

I made the mistake of getting to the theater at the exact time the movie was to start, and it took me forever to find an empty seat. Once the movie started, there was no empty seat left in the theater - they even had to bring in a couple of chairs for people! The audience ranged from 17-year-olds, to middle-aged couples, and everyone seemed to be enjoying it - which surprised me, because I only expected a turnout of young gangsta teens who worship Eminem for his frowned-upon lyrics. But it turns out that the older generation can appreciate him too - they may not like him, but they can't deny that he has a charming on-screen presence - and that his first movie turned out to be quite good.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: eminem is great again
Review: omg, this movie was perfect you dont even have to like eminem to see his movie. its sad but not a tear jerker and also it was funny you may not want to let children of the younger age see this but it isent that unproper but there are some seens thay shoudent see but pther than that its a good, no great movie


<< 1 .. 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 .. 35 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates