From: Adam Kempenaar
To: Sam Hallgren; Eric Baker
Subject: Eminem Plays Jake LaMotta
Good morning, gentlemen. Thanks for agreeing to participate in this Movie Club with me; I hope we can make it a regular feature and possibly even get a reader or two involved. I know Eric was out of town this weekend and doesn't plan to see '8 Mile' until tonight, but I thought that Sam and I could get the discussion started. Sam, you may recall the conversation we had on our way to see 'Roger Dodger' during the Chicago Film Fest about the power of expectations. We talked about how sometimes we both go into movies with such high expectations that we inevitably end up disappointed, even if the movie is, in fact, good; conversely, sometimes we have low (or no) expectations and end up loving the movie (like 'Roger Dodger', for example). Then, of course, there are those instances where a movie is exactly as good or bad as we thought it would be. '8 Mile' fits into this final category for me. I expected it to be a gritty portrayal of a young man trying to transcend his lot in life through music -- 'Purple Rain' with better writing, acting and directing minus the melodrama. I also thought it could be one of the better films of the year so far, and that's exactly what director Curtis Hanson has delivered. There's been plenty of hype surrounding the movie so I don't want to waste a lot of time talking about the plot, which you can read about at the film's official site. (It also allows you to navigate your way around the area surrounding 8 Mile, the road that serves as the diving line between the white and black sections of the Detroit.) I could start by talking about the acting debut of Eminem, who essentially plays himself since the movie is based on his own turbulent upbringing in this rough section of the city. But one of the most interesting things about '8 Mile' for me was the way Hanson and writer Scott Silver appropriated Scorsese's classic (one of my all-time favorite movies) 'Raging Bull'. The opening credit sequence shows Eminem's alter ego, Jimmy Smith (aka Rabbit), preparing to "battle" with another wannabe rapper. The connection to boxing is made explicitly clear as Rabbit goes over rhymes in the bathroom before taking the stage, executing all of the hand gestures we're accustomed to seeing in rap videos like he was warming up his jab. On stage each contestant is furnished with a beat and then expected to rap over the top, spontaneously ridiculing your opponent. The rappers stare each other down and flitter about the stage just like two boxers in a ring. The boxing/battle correlation aside, where the 'Raging Bull' connection truly struck me was in the way that Jimmy's character ultimately gets betrayed by two of the people who claim throughout to be on his side. The only difference between Jake LaMotta and Rabbit is that Jake displays his paranoia about being betrayed in destructive fits, while Rabbit assumes the best even when he starts to recognize signs that something might not be right. (I'm being deliberately vague here for anyone reading this who hasn't seen the movie yet.) The key scene comes when Rabbit finally hits rock bottom: his mother wants him to move out of their trailer, a place he despises being anyway; the betrayal occurs; and he gets the hell beat out of him by a disgruntled group of rappers who call themselves the Leaders of the Free World. But instead of fighting back, he just absorbs the blows. Even when they yell for him to fight, he just stands there and takes their abuse, just like LaMotta does in the ring that final time with Sugar Ray Robinson -- though LaMotta, admittedly, takes far more punishment than Rabbit does. Did/do either of you guys see the connection, or am I just babbling after a long weekend? I suppose someone could call it theft, but since I liked the movie tremendously I'll call it homage. Looking forward to hearing your reactions. Certainly plenty more to talk about.
-CS (aka "mc white boy")
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