Documentary

Directed By: Steven Leckart

Release year: 2025

Studio/Streamer: Paramount Plus

Audio Description produced By: (Need Credit)

Written By: (Need Credit)

Narrated By: (Need Credit)

What Is it?: Look. If you had one shot. one opportunity. to stalk any celebrity you wanted and then talk about it in a documentary, would you capture it, or just let it slip? Stans explores the phenomenon behind Eminem fans, taking the term from his song Stan about a mentally unhinged stalker that kills his girlfriend and drives his car off a bridge. It’s apparently now a cool thing to be this.

what Works: Not the first documentary I’ve seen this year focused on n artist and their fans, following Metallica saved My Life. Stans does take things a little differently, as Eminem’s involvement directly in the lives of his fans is far less hands on, but there are moments of appreciation. Otherwise, it is just the story of the rise of Slim Shady, how he changed the perception of who could rap, took over TRL, and became one of the top selling recording artists of his generation. Along the way, he got a bunch of fans, but no one here feels like they are about to drink a fifth of vodka.

Stans does a nice job also of exploring the ups and downs of Eminem’s career, going through a period where he nearly died, and wanted to get sober to see his daughter grow up. His first album in his sober process wasn’t quite as well recieved, but his fans stuck it out, and he continues to produce hits. this is a pretty easy documentary, promising a look at Eminem and his fans, and it does that. it does avoid actual “Stan’s”, people truly mentally ill, since the term has been flipped into a positive light to just mean an obsessive fan, not necessarily a crazy or dangerous one. Special appearances from people like Adam Sandler and Carson Daly are nice touches.

It certainly isn’t winning the Oscar this year, but for these Stan’s, you’ll like it. I consider myself a fan of Eminem, but not on the level of then people in the documentary. I have some albums, but no other Eminem merch (unless you count a physical copy of 8 Mile in my collection).

I wasn’t necessarily expecting a deep look at Eminem’s lyrics, and how he’s had an impact on various parts of society through them, occasionally coming across as unnecessarily as homophobic or chauvinistic, but I thought perhaps we might get more of a discussion on the actual song, what it means, and why people are Ok with being compared to Stan. if I was invited to star in a documentary called “the Crazies”, I’d want to clarify. But that’s just me. Perhaps I’m projecting.

the Audio Description: Solid audio description for what is essentially a talking head documentary. I didn’t expect much, but there are moments where we have archival footage, and there’s a bit more to describe. None of the “Stan’s” are truly given much time to tell their individual stories, so telling us who these people are when they talk isn’t as important. it’s more about the general experience of being a Stan, and how that makes Eminem feel.

Why you Might Like it: Well, you’re a Stan. or, almost a Stan, and are interested in a documentary about Eminem.

Why you Might Not Like it: you probably would have enjoyed the film if it had evolved into the use of the word, and how it is now used to be a super fan of other artists. It doesn’t have that angle, as it works simply as a documentary on Eminem.

Final Thoughts: a good film to watch while you’re cleaning out your closet. I won’t back down, but Stans is a worthy documentary for all interested in Eminem. Sadly, there’s still no Mekhi Pfifer.

Fresh: Final Grade: 8.1/10