8-miles toward nowhere

The producers of 8-mile had a brilliant idea. Eschew scriptwriters and any resemblance of a plot, stick Eminem on a well-promoted screen and you've still got quite the lucrative movie. It may not be very coherent, or stunningly good, but it can and will make lots of money. And isn't that, in the end, the goal of any Hollywood project?

Luckily for 8-mile, Eminem turned out to be a pretty good cast, supporting cast, and soundtrack, transforming what could have been an unalloyed disaster into a decent film with a star who is spellbinding in an intangibly fascinating way. 8-mile's only true letdown resides in the fact that it settled for reasonably good, when it stood so close to great.

And also, perhaps, in the fact that the plot is virtually nonexistent. Actually, it can be summed up in two words: Eminem rapping. Essentially every interesting, consistent part of the film centers around Eminem's performances, which are certainly mesmerizing, yet not substantial enough to merit two hours of screen time.

The basic storyline is a white boy named Jimmy Smith a.k.a Bunny Rabbit (Eminem) trying to make his way as a rapper in the slums of Detroit, while struggling in a broken home with his mom (Kim Basinger). Yet rather than explore the complexities of the race relationships and deep-seated reasons behind Eminem's underlying anger and resentment, the film skirts around the edges, implying, but never really establishing.

It's documentary-esque in its direction and editing; 8-mile focuses on portraying street life, but with no discernible end message or purpose. And while 8-mile gives a gritty, realistic view of the unglamorous life of a struggling hip-hop artist, it fails to base all its ideas in a logical storyline.

Consequently, Jimmy's relationships and problems seem much less important than his rapping—- the film could almost pass as one of his more serious music videos. Adding to the problem of seemingly arbitrary scene sequences is the heavy detractor of gratuitous violence and sex.

None of the plot lines end in anything remotely resembling a conclusion, leaving far too many questions unanswered. Indeed, Eminem's rap line "Lose yourself in the music" certainly applies to his film debut.

8 MILE (R, 111 minutes) – Contains profanity, sexual activity, some violence and drug use. At area theaters. Official site: www.8-mile.com