Decius wrote:
] ] "If New Orleans is "the Big Easy," then Detroit is "the
] ] Big Ugly."
] ] A convenient metaphor for all things scary and doomed,
] ] the city has long served as a bleak backdrop for writers
] ] and filmmakers who paint it as a desolate, dangerous
] ] melange of burned-up buildings and forgotten dreams."
]
] I'm fairly interested in seeing this movie. Making it out of a
] ghetto as a rapper is a difficult road, especially for a white
] guy. There is a very powerful story to tell here if they do it
] well. The thing is that Americans put so much focus on rock
] stars and basketball stars, and the fact is that most people
] who do get out of the ghetto are much more likely to come out
] of it as accountants then as rock stars, and the challenges
] associated with that are every bit as real. Focusing on talent
] based activities instead of skill based activities encourages
] people to focus on stuff that most people will never be good
] at no matter how hard they try.
]
] Of course, right now you are thinking, who would go see a
] movie about an accountant. I'll offer that if we can't make
] the right message interesting its because we're not trying.

Oh how right you are! First, yes, you can make it out of the ghetto, even those in Detroit, if you work hard and you're a bit lucky. I'm proof. Not bad for a Polack I must say.

Second, the message that you're much more likely to succeed in life with skill rather than talent is an important one to propagate. Could you do a movie about it? Absolutely. Although being an accountant would probably not be the skill of choice. Maybe a great networking engineer... ;-)

RE: Detroit Shows Its True Grit in '8 Mile' - 11/6/02