Three things quelled my worries. One: Curtis Hanson, of LA Confidential, was at the helm as director and was bringing his Oscar winning actress, Kim Basinger, with him. Two: Eminem's album includes the portrayal of several different characters, most notably, the now infamous Slim Shady (please stand up, please stand up!) Three: The plot of the film was loosely based on Eminem's own time as a struggling rapper in Detroit. If it was going to be based on him and he would be playing himself, s0 he couldn't mess it up too badly.

8 Mile was the result of this creative jambalaya. The title refers to both the trailer park where the main character, Jimmy, lives and to the road that is the dividing class line in Detroit. Jimmy (Eminem), also called Rabbit by his friends, has just broken up with his girlfriend (Taryn Manning) and moves back into his mother's trailer park home with Mom (Basinger) and his little sister. He just took a new job stamping at a metal factory and spends his nights hanging out with a young group of wanna-be rappers. His friends include a pair of brothers with opposing views on everything, Cheddar Bob, whom they love, despite the fact that he may be the dumbest person ever conceived, and Future (Mekhi Phifer), who runs a rap open-mike contest in an underground club.

The movie opens with Jimmy taking his shot at Future's open mike show, which is a rap equivalent of battle of the bands, where each contestant has 45 seconds to verbally rip their opponent a new one. Jimmy gets his turn at the mike and is paralyzed by stage fright, cowering off the stage to chants of "Choke, choke!" The rest of the movie follows his mental and emotional struggle toward overcoming his stage fright and re-earning his respect. There are sub-plots that follow his relationship with his mother and her worthless boyfriend, a blossoming new relationship with a mysterious girl named Alex (Brittany Murphy), and disputes with a rival group of rappers.

Director Curtis Hanson, who brought such a rich, money hungry world to the screen in LA Confidential, realistically created Jimmy's world on the wrong side of the tracks. Shot in a grimy palette of grays and blues, one feels the oppression of poverty and hopelessness. He guides his actors with a gentle hand and almost no moments arise that glare "The director told them to do that!" Eminem is a pleasant surprise, turning in an honest performance as Jimmy. He retains a hard exterior, but all the years of hardship and struggle come staring out of his wounded blue eyes. It hardly looks like acting at all. Basinger is an interesting combination of comic relief, motherly love and neurotic train wreck. Note the many comments from Jimmy's friends about how hot his Mom is. Murphy (Clueless, Don't Say a Word) is handicapped with a sadly underdeveloped character in Alex, though she plays her with intensity. Phifer's Future is solid, though not as much of a display of Phifer's talents as last year's O.

The plot climaxes when Jimmy is brutally beaten by the rival rap gang in front of his kid sister, Lily. Seeking out vengeance in the only way he knows, he signs himself up for the battle at the underground club, where he knows the gang members are the reigning champions. The film peaks strongly with a head to head rap showdown of insults and rebuttals worthy of any Eminem album. Non-rap fans will find themselves rooting for Jimmy to out do the opposition.

While a far cry from his last film, Hanson has himself a winner in 8 Mile. Who knows if Eminem has any range as an actor, or if he even aspires to act again, but it is a beautiful debut, worthy of his director and supporting cast. If you like Eminem's music, you must see it. If you don't, see it anyway. It really comes down to the film's tagline: Find your voice.

Hope Villanueva is a freelance bookkeeper making her theatrical directing debut in the Pacific Palisades this January. God help us all.