This Shady Films produced documentary goes through ‘Stans’ who are the embodiment of fan culture with sit-down interviews with people from all walks of life who have one obsession, Eminem.
This documentary explores fandom and has a solid array of contributors including celebrity ‘Stans’ including Ed Sheeran who also contribute to the doc along with talking head segments from Dr Dre and even Adam Sandler.
Fan Stans comprise of the rest of the interviewed cast who dive into their fandom from a French man who went to Detroit to explore the city to pay tribute and respect to a man he idolised all the way to a lady who has a World Record for the most tattoos of the same artist tattooed on their body.
They’re all a little too interested in Eminem but not to the point where that fandom becomes toxic which in my eyes is the very limit of what fandom should be. What I did find fascinating was that everyone interviewed within the show were very respectful of Em’s boundaries without most of them even meeting the guy, they all came across respectful as opposed to a story Em recalls of literally being chased out of a mall with his daughter as fame certainly got him far more attention than he could have wanted.
Stans focuses on the more tolerated fandom as opposed to toxic fandom whilst at the same time embarking on discussions of mental health, death and how life has unfolded across the career of one of the most influential rap artists in the world.
Whilst Em can’t give his entire time and life to his fans he is able to give them something back through his music and this documentary also serves as a showcase of his fandom and appreciation of his fans otherwise it just wouldn’t have been made in the first place.
I also found it quite funny how despite the documentary showcasing certain fandom some would deem unusual Eminem even admits that himself that it’s weird that people come and visit his now demolished home, despite his stardom he remains humble with a line saying “It’s cool that people care, but it’s weird because it’s me”.
A conscious choice of the documentary is to not dive down the toxic fandom but it is hinted at throughout the show with glimpses of letters demanding Eminem’s attention and the constant referral to the infamous song Stan which resulted in the term Stan being added to the Oxford English Dictionary with the definition of: “overzealous or obsessive fan of a particular celebrity”
Not so much of a career spanning documentary as such Stans is a love letter to fan with almost like a message of, I love you, but don’t get too crazy on me vibe.
It’s good to have the analysis of Eminem’s career through the eyes of a fan but at the same time the segments where Em discusses things to camera, this certainly needed expanding upon but maybe that was a conscious choice to not take the light away from the fan-sided approach.
Slim Shady LP was the first album I ever brought and that give no shits attitude, that raw unfiltered truth spoken in those lyrics turned me into the honest, gobby, take-no-s**t person I am today. I may not be a Stan on the level shown in this documentary but there really is a little Slim Shady in all of us.
STANS, THE EMINEM-PRODUCED DOCUMENTARY ON SUPERFANDOM, TO LAUNCH IN CINEMAS WORLDWIDE AND EXCLUSIVELY AT AMC IN THE U.S. ON THURSDAY, AUGUST 7
Our Rating
Summary
Stans is a love-letter to fans but it feels like only the header has been penned and there’s plenty more left beneath the surface.
