Today we celebrate the fifteen year anniversary of the cult classic Hip Hop movie “8 Mile.” As we reminisce and look into our metaphorical rear view mirrors at the flicks undeniable contributions to spit culture, we cant help but feel a tinge of nostalgia and awe at what the movie did for then up-and-coming lyricist Eminem, who was making his acting debut.
8 Mile Trailer
“Eminem wins by a knockout!” raves Rolling Stone, as the Grammy Award-winning phenomenon makes his feature film debut in this gripping story about the boundaries that hold us back – and the courage that can set us free. For Jimmy Smith, Jr. (Eminem), life is a daily fight just to keep hope alive.
Em broke onto the scene hungry and ready to step up to the acting challenge. Determined not to go the way of Vanilla Ice before him, he prepared and sacrificed for the role in a way many did not anticipate. He was asked to dye his trademark platinum tresses dark for the movie, and was rumored to have lost more than 20 lbs for the role as well.
Em wasnt alone in his endeavor to earn his acting chops in the film, as 8 Mile also introduced us to the likes of a young Anthony Mackie. Though the duo appeared to have tons of dramatic acting experience between them, in reality they were both screen neophytes just trying to get it right. We imagine that acting alongside of the likes of Kim Basinger and the late Brittany Murphy was no easy task.
Evan Jones, Obie Trice, the dearly departed Proof and X to the Z Xzibit also became names that masses were easily able to later identify thanks to their roles in the movie. And Mekhi Phifers performance was phenomenal.
8 Mile – Eminem and Mekhi Phifer Sweet Home Alabama OFFICIAL HD VIDEO
Get one month’s free trial at http://www.pictureboxfilms.com now. Watch now, and check out exclusive bonus content! http://bit.ly/pictureboxfilms Or join in the conversation on Facebook @PictureBox and Twitter @PictureBoxFilms “Eminem wins by a knockout!” raves Rolling Stone, as the Grammy Award-winning phenomenon makes his feature film debut in this gripping story about the boundaries that hold us back — and the courage that can set us free.
8 Mile followed a young, aspiring white rapper named B Rabbit from a trailer park on the proverbial other side of the tracks on Detroits infamous 8 Mile Road. While Em did help add elements to make it feel a bit more like the way he cut his Hip Hop teeth back in the D, it was never his true life story.
Said Em in a 2012 interview with Vibe Magazine, People who really listen to my music probably know whats real in that movie and whats not. There were bits and pieces that were taken from my life, but for the most part, it was the story of the underdog.
8 Mile assisted with the normalization and cultural mainstreaming of battle rap and changing the perception that a certain population could not rap, thus ensuring that anyone who dared step to the mic should at least get a chance to destroy it before being asked to back away and relinquish it.
The film payed for itself on opening weekend alone as it reportedly took in a whopping $51 million. The total production budget was said to have been $41 million. Not too shabby for the new jack from Detroit City.
As great as 8 Mile did at the box office, that wasnt its only prize. The undeniably dope track “Lose Yourself” went on to win an Academy Award and was the first rap song to ever win an Oscar.
Eminem – Lose Yourself [HD]
feat. Eminem from the movie 8 MILE No copyright infringement intended. All contents belong to its rightful owners. This is for entertainment purposes only.
But even though his work was getting crazy amounts of fanfare, Em was not there to take it all in. In fact he was not even there to collect his award.
He would later admit in an interview that he was sleeping during the Oscars live broadcast that night that he won. He not only didnt show up for it, he didnt even see it go down because he really thought he had no chance of winning.
8 Mile was able to depict a moment in time that captured the fight of the underdog. Mathers made you want to cheer for him period. And whether it was a tale being told with a few truths and mostly fiction or not, you believed it. It was easy to visualize these cats going to lyrical war and using their pens and pads as weapons in real life.
We recognized the characters and their trials and tribulations. We saw some of them in ourselves and our friends. Whether it was the love story or the kid getting jumped for simply being different.
We internalized the message. We got it. And we wanted more.
