8 Mile
Short description
Set in Detroit in 1995, 8 Mile follows Jimmy Smith Jr., a young white factory worker who lives with his mother and younger sister in a poor neighbourhood divided from the suburbs by the road that gives the film its title. Jimmy is a talented rapper, but he lacks the confidence and the material to break through. After a humiliating first appearance at a local rap battle, he has to reckon with his family troubles, a fragile relationship and the rivals who dominate the scene, while his friends from the group Three One Third urge him on.
Curtis Hanson directed the film, the ninth of thirteen features in his directing career, following Wonder Boys and preceding In Her Shoes. Scott Silver wrote the screenplay, and Brian Grazer and Jimmy Iovine produced alongside Hanson. Eminem plays Jimmy, heading a cast that includes Kim Basinger, Mekhi Phifer, Brittany Murphy, Evan Jones and Omar Benson Miller. Against a budget of 41 million dollars, the film took about 243 million dollars worldwide, a strong return for a drama.
On IMDb it holds 7.2 out of 10 from roughly 350,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.1 out of 10 from about 8,000 votes, showing broad audience approval that matches the critics' rating of 7 out of 10 from 210 reviews. The production drew on 42 credited cast members and 145 credited crew.
What's left behind the scenes
- The film states that abandoned buildings are not demolished in Detroit, but casinos are constantly being built instead. However, Detroit did not have any casinos until 1997.
- The song "Lose Yourself," written by Eminem specifically for the film, won an Oscar, becoming the first rap composition to win the "Best Song" award.
- At the beginning of the film, Rabbit is supposed to compete with rapper Lil'Tic, played by D12 member Proof. Like Eminem, he was a well-known Detroit freestyle rapper.
- The film was shot in Detroit at 27 different locations.
- Filming took 58 days.
- The film's production involved 150 crew members and 2,500 local actors as extras.
- Stephanie Smith won a $3,200 bingo prize, while before 2000, the maximum Michigan lottery win did not exceed $500.
- In the rap battle scenes, Eminem, who played Jimmy, freely altered the lyrics.
- The piece of paper Jimmy writes on during the bus ride was the same one Eminem wrote the lyrics to “Lose Yourself” on. The sheet was sold at an online auction for $10,000.
- Filming the rap battles took entire days, and the 300 extras began to get bored. Director Curtis Hanson organized impromptu rap battles among them, promising to film the three winners in the movie competing against Eminem. A jury was formed, and each of the 134 volunteer participants was given 15 seconds to perform. Ultimately, the jury selected four participants for a short shoot with Eminem. It was supposed to be just a pretense of a rap battle against them to save his voice, but the audience started heckling him, and he couldn't stay silent.
- The film's title uses the name of the highway separating Detroit from the northern suburbs. Eminem grew up near it and filmed some scenes of the music video for “The Way I Am” there as well.
- Before filming, Eminem lost almost 24 pounds.
- Initially, it was assumed that the film “8 Mile” (2002) would have an unofficial sequel titled “Southpaw” (2015), in which Eminem would play a boxer whose life had taken a downturn and who was trying to fight for custody of his daughter in court. This idea never materialized, but the film was eventually made with Jake Gyllenhaal in the lead role. Antoine Fuqua directed it, and Eminem became the producer of the soundtrack.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
