12 Years a Slave:
In 1841, Solomon Northup, a free black family man and skilled musician living in Saratoga Springs, New York, is given a tempting job offer from two charming businessmen by the names of Brown and Hamilton. Unfortunately, the get Solomon extremely drunk, and he wakes up, about to be sold into slavery with several other black people. Despite his pleas and claims that he is in fact a free man, the slavers beat him into submission, and dub him "Platt", an escaped Georgian slave. He is shipped off to Louisiana via boat, and so begins his long and harrowing time as a slave in the South. Now, after seeing this film win Best Picture at the Golden Globes, and seeing several cast members nominated for other awards, I knew I had to see it. I finally got the chance this Monday, and I must say, it is one of the best films of 2013, by far. Chiwetel Ejiofor isn't a particularly well-known actor, only appearing in supporting or minor roles in films such as Amistad, 2012, Serenity, and Children of Men, but I can't imagine people not wanting him in their films now. His performance as the abused and intelligent Solomon Northup is incredible, and the suffering he endures is unbearable to witness, and his eventual (semi-spoiler) escape is enough to make you shed a few tears of joy. Ejiofor definitely deserves the numerous nominations he has earned with this gut-wrenching and soulful performance. Another actor that deserves some commending is Lupita Nyong'o, who portrays female slave Patsey. She has a lot to work with, but she pulls it off really well. She's tough and hardened after years of servitude, but is also somewhat vulnerable and fragile, and she has some of the most stomach-churning scenes focused on her (including an uncomfortable quiet sex scene and a prolonged, climactic, and graphic whipping scene), as she is constantly raped and abused by her psychotic, Bible-thumping master. Michael Fassbender (X-Men: First Class, Prometheus, Fish Tank, 300, Shame, Inglorious Basterds), who previously worked with McQueen on the films Shame and Hunger, plays Edwin Epps, the film's main antagonist, and he is truly one of the most despicable and evil characters of the year, and he would definitely have appeared on my "Top 10 Villains of 2013" list had I seen this film earlier. His near constant abuse of his slaves is made even more unsettling by the fact that he justifies in his head, usually using religion. I really must give props to Fassbender for pulling off this role, as that must not have been easy to do. Epps is also shown to be a somewhat conflicted character, as he is this very strange love/hate relationship with Patsey: he constantly belittles, rapes, and abuses her, yet he insults his wife in front of all their slaves by saying he would choose Patsey over her if he had to. Speaking of wives, Epps' wife Mary is portrayed by Sarah Paulson (American Horror Story, American Gothic, Game Change), and she also plays a very sadistic and mean-spirited character. Mary is a very vindictive and jealous woman who abuses Patsey at every possible chance because of her husband's infatuation with her. She is not as abusive or crazy as Epps, but she's pretty close. Again, props to Paulson for pulling off such a tough role, as she typically plays heroines. Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock, Star Trek- Into Darkness, War Horse, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug) portrays William Ford, the master on the first plantation that Northup is sent to. Ford, despite being a slave owner, is actually not particularly cruel or mean to his slaves, and actually doesn't like seeing the uglier parts of the job (i.e. the abuse and suffering the slaves undergo). He actually has a rather close and friendly relationship with Northup, and gives him a violin as a gift within the first few weeks of Northup working for him. It would be easy for the filmmakers to just demonize the white slave owners, and rightfully so, but I think it was kind of interesting for them to show that not all of them were purely evil and insane, but that some of them could be decent, and it shows a more human side to them you don't typically see in this type of movie. Paul Dano (Looper, Ruby Sparks, Little Miss Sunshine, Being Flynn, There Will Be Blood, Prisoners) appears in a supporting role as John Tibeats, a carpenter who oversees the slaves on Ford's plantation. He constantly belittles and disrespects the slaves, especially Northup, whom he hold the most contempt for, as Northup is everything he's not: intelligent, skilled, and most of all, has the respect of Ford. Dano really shines in this supporting role, despite his character being an unlikeable prick, and I wish he would get more lead roles, as I think he's a very talented and very underrated actor. Brad Pitt (who served as a producer on the film) and Paul Giamatti have minor (borderline cameo) roles in the film. Pitt plays a Canadian man who opposes slavery and is kind to Northup, Giamatti plays the opposite: a greedy, extremely callous, and cruel slave-trader who sells Northup into slavery. Scoot McNairy (who previously worked with Pitt on Killing Them Softly) and Taran Killam (Saturday Night Live, Scrubs) play Brown and Hamilton, the upscale, but treacherous, businessmen who betray Northup and give him to slave-traders. Alfre Woodard and Quevenzhane Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wild) have minor roles in the film, and Bryan Batt (Mad Men) appears as a judge. Steve McQueen only has three films under his belt, and already I consider him one of the greatest directors of today. Already he's won numerous awards, and this film just shows he has a long and prosperous career ahead of him, and I predict his next project will be equally as good. John Ridley also must be given credit, he has penned an excellent and compelling emotional powerhouse of a screenplay, and he had equal part in creating this modern masterpiece. Hans Zimmer's musical score isn't as grand as his more famous ones, it's subtle but has a lot of emotion and gravitas, there's just something about it that moves you. This film is actually very authentic and accurate, many of the filming locations were actual plantations, and one was very close to where Northup was actually kept. The fact that it's based on Northup's own autobiography makes the violence seen on screen even more shocking and horrendous, as you know, pretty much for a fact, that the people on screen actually lived, and underwent this sort of inhumane torture (or inflicted it on others). It's hard to think that this is how black people as a whole were treated for a long time, it's just unpleasant and nasty. 12 Years a Slave is definitely one of the year's best (and most horrifying and disturbing) films, it's a very raw and realistic film that packs quite a punch, and has a fantastic cast and crew. The bittersweet ending is perfect, and it's hard not to get choked up or a little teary-eyed during it. It's a very powerful and emotionally grueling movie that really tugs on the heart strings. Not to mention the excellent writing, intriguing characters, fantastic cinematography, interesting musical score, and historically authenticity and attention to detail. The only flaw I can even think of is that in a few small spots the pacing's a bit slow, and that's not even a huge problem. And if all that's not enough to convince you, well, maybe the Golden Globe win for Best Picture will. 5/5 stars.
(Image: Wikipedia)
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