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Amy Hollingsworth, contributing writer at Crosswalk, gives a mother's testimony about encountering the movie with her son: "When my son and I exited the theatre … he didn't once mention an oppressive desire to worship Satan or to turn people to stone or to fly on broomsticks. His first remark (one he returned to again and again) was concerning the scene, depicted rather benignly by a flash of light, where Harry's mother is killed trying to save him, then a baby.  My son didn't take away a fascination for the occult, only the thing that touched him the most: a young boy losing his mother. He noted the loss; I noted the sacrifice. Powerful images, heartfelt lessons—not the kind likely to be spawned from the loins of Beelzebub."

Mainstream reviewers are debating whether this film is better than the last. Kirk Honeycutt (Hollywood Reporter) is disappointed for several reasons: "The sense of discovery … is missing. In its stead comes frantic activity. Characterization takes a back seat to action. Rather than shape [Rowling's] material for cinematic purposes, [screenwriter Steven] Kloves and Columbus retain the most tangential subplots and weakest characters. What plays like an intriguing side excursion on the printed page merely gums up the works in a film that at 161 minutes feels as bloated as an overfed child wobbling away from the Christmas table."

At the popular "film geek" site Ain't It Cool News, critic Harry Knowles offers it "a great deal of praise." But he adds a harsh criticism: "It is better than the first Harry Potter film, however it still has an excruciatingly awful ending that just never seems to end … 20 minutes of excruciatingly self-congratulatory pats on the backs and clappings and hugs and presentations, and huge entrances and laaaadeeedaaas."

8 Mile opened to a huge box office success this weekend ($51.2 million.) It also kept theater employees busy preventing younger viewers from slipping past its R-rating barrier.

The story follows a familiar Rocky/Karate Kid formula, but is set in a troubled corner of Detroit, where young people vent their anger, prejudice, and bitterness in contests of bile-spewing, yet skillful, rap. The film has received a lot of hype as being semi-autobiographical for its star, the controversial young rap celebrity Eminem. But director Curtis Hanson does a fine job of making what is predictable seem fresh, and he finds in Eminem a surprisingly engaging screen presence.

David DiCerto (Catholic News) calls it "a raw foray into the high-stakes world of Detroit's hip-hop subculture. Unfortunately, despite the controversial rap phenom's strong debut and a unique stratum of American culture rarely explored, the hackneyed story line lends little originality to the tired genre of inner-city angst films."

Will Johnson (Relevant Magazine) says Eminem "shows his impressive command over subtlety." In spite of the questionable behavior of many of the film's character, Johnson argues, "One of the most unusual aspects of this movie is its unexpected high moral ground. It promotes ideas of loyalty, hard work and thoughtfulness. This seems to be the opposite of Eminem's blatantly and purposely controversial lyrics. Though the movie has a never-ending string of bad language, a graphic sex scene, and some adult subject matter, the movie still feels uplifting and inspirational."

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November (Web-only) 2002, Vol. 46