12 Years A Slave: Review

Rarely have I experienced a movie which caused the entire audience to remain silent whilst leaving the cinema. Even rarer have I sat through a film which caused viewers to leave early solely due to it's unforgiving depictions of history. It's a very hard film to watch, but regardless of this, 12 Years A Slave is a truly phenomenal movie. 

The film tells the true story of a man called Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), who spent the majority of his life as a free man. One night however, after consuming a little too much alcohol, Solomon passes out, and when he awakens, he is chained up in a small, dark room. Solomon is then thrown into slavery with countless other victims like himself, and must endure the colossal injustices attributed to his race. He is first sold to a polite slave-owner by the name of Ford (Benedict Cumberbatch), but certain events lead Solomon to fall under the harsh treatment of the incredibly racist Edwin Epps (Michael Fassbender). 

Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor)

Very early on, 12 Years A Slave establishes itself as an honest depiction of the past. Nothing is glorified to be entertaining, or dramatised to the point of exaggeration. This is a brutal, realistic look into the lives of arguably the most violated race of people in history. One of the first scenes that genuinely shocked me showed Solomon attempt to be adamant about his rightful name, and get punched in the face as punishment. Compared to other events that take place throughout the film though, this could be considered mild at worst. 

Despite it sounding like it, 12 Years A Slave doesn't constantly pile on scenes of violence to get its message across. There are numerous conversations which expertly present the complicated moral issues with owning people as if they were 'property'. Benedict Cumberbatch's character is portrayed as a fair, caring man who would quite happily not own slaves at all if it weren't normal within society. In the first scene he is in, for example, he desperately wants to buy numerous slaves just so that he can keep them together as a family. Even Solomon defends him, as if he believes him to be a genuinely decent man. All it takes to change his outlook however, is for a fellow slave to say "It doesn't matter if he's a good man. He's a slave-owner." This quote alone is perfect in summarising exactly what is wrong with the entire era, and I haven't seen a film before which shows the morality of the situation quite so successfully as in 12 Years A Slave. 

Edwin Epps (Michael Fassbender)

Not surprisingly, 12 Years A Slave is nominated for a multitude of awards, including 9 Oscars. And rightfully so, as every single actor featured plays their part faithfully and without faltering once. There is a vast number of recognisable names featured, from Brad Pitt to Paul Dano, and everybody presents their respective characters perfectly. The film would be nowhere near as effective and powerful without the incredibly talented cast, or the engrossing directing by Steve McQueen. 

It's difficult to think of a single issue I have with 12 Years A Slave. If I had to be incredibly critical, I feel like some of the elongated scenes of Solomon simply staring into the distance were a little too drawn out, but for the most part they added even more layers of depth to his character. 

Verdict 
12 Years A Slave is a very difficult movie to endure in its entirety. It is also a very powerful and important movie which should be experienced by everyone. I imagine it will stick with me for a very long time, and rightfully so, because it is easily one of the best movies I have seen in a very, very long time. 

"I don't want to survive. I want to live."