12 years a slave:Review

Last Sunday  I went to the cinema to watch 12 years a slave. Prior to seeing it I had  high expectations due to the constant critical acclaim that the  film has received: multiple BAFTA ,Golden Globe wins and Oscar nominations.12 years a slave is an adaptation of memoirs written by Solomon Northup who was originally a free man that was  abducted and then sold into slavery. On a funnier more ironic note one of the bad guys who sold   Solomon was the guy from SNL who always takes the mick out Brad Pitt(Taran Killam). He was surprisingly good at playing a dramatic role which is evidently a huge change from his usual hilariousness. 

Chitweel Ejiour's performance as Solomon Northup had real depth he portrayed a man who was robbed of everything he had ever known. He lost his family, his dignity and his earthly possession. Despite this he never lost hope. He courageously fought for twelve years with the sole purpose of reuniting with his family. Ejour's performance was truly awe inspiring. As a viewer I believed him. I felt his desperation; I felt the sting of his blows and his disgraceful loss of dignity. Instead of pitying him you demanded that he got back the precious gift of freedom that he once possessed.

One of the best scenes in the movie showed Solomon Northup turning on one of the ranch overseers that frequently attempts to intimidate him. . There is a particular moment in the film where Solomon is working on some building work while John Tibbets (cruel overseer) confrontationally demands that he has not done a good enough job after all his labour(not true).Solomon disagrees with this and as a result Tibbets threatens him with a whip. Solomon ironically pins him to the ground and starts whipping him. However, what happens next is far from amusing I guess you are going to have to watch the film to see for yourself.

After watching the film a friend of mine said that he thought it was 'a bit too extreme' and 'unnecessary'. On the contrary yes it was uncomfortable to watch at times but a film about slavery is hardly going to be a fairy tale filled with primroses and mythical creatures. To sugar coat such subject matter would have been pointless and deceitful. The film is portraying history where black people were sold and herded like cattle. No it’s not a nice film it’s a real film depicting the grizzliest grit possible. I mean what would you expect? Once again it’s about slavery: people were shown being beaten to death, there are rape scenes, children were stolen from their parents and innocent people were stomped and trodden on like they were imamate objects. Yes I was deeply saddened; yes I cried like a fool throughout the film, yes there were moments that I couldn’t look at the screen without physically being sick. However, if it was easy to watch then no one would watch it and realise the extent of the sheer brutality. Nothing impacts more on the human mind than a visual image because it’s hard to get out of your head and that’s the point.  The scariest thing is that slavery still exists today and condition’s then were probably a hell of a lot worse .One of the most gut wrenching scenes was when Solomon was forced to whip the life out of Patsy until her flesh was sliced, split and was excreting bodily fluid.

The film has an all-star cast: Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumber batch, Paul Giammati and Brad Pitt. Cumberbacth's performance was alright, he is a good actor after all. Unfortunately, it was ruined by his attempt of a southern accent which was abysmal. It was a cross between a cartoon cowboy and a drunken Englishmen. Fassbender  on the other hand was wonderful his performance as 'Edward Epps' (the sadistic  and infamous 'n***** breaker') was soo unbelievably real it made you question if he was enjoying  the role a little too much. Well that’s a sign of a brilliant actor I suppose. I believed him and at the end of the film I wanted to punch him in the face, so I guess a job well done. His accent unlike Cumberbatch’s was completely authentic. Epps obsession with slave girl Patsy made you cringe to the point of puking well I suppose that’s a bit of an understatement really. His depiction of how ignorance and racism prevented him from expressing his feelings for beautiful slave girl Patsy was psychologically triumphant.  Fassbender captured the social conditioning perfectly. Epps is confusingly attracted to Patsy his feelings for her are clearly undisguised. However he  does not know what to do with his feelings other than express it through violence and abuse.  

Lupita Nyong’o who played Patsy’s was sensationally heart-warming. She presented a woman whose courage and strength, physically, mentally and spiritually far exceeds words. I literally found out today that this is her first film and my jaw dropped. I mean how the heck? Her performance was so real. It would have been easy to play the role of the whimpering young slave girl who pities her own situation and remains beaten in the corner. But oh no! Instead she portrays a strong, attractive and intelligent young black woman that does not allow her horrendous situation to break and destroy her soul. I hope she wins all the awards in the world for this role because believe me you literally couldn't  get any more raw meaty emotion from someone who had  been acting for a trillion years (I know thats a matter of opinion, but come of it, she was really that good).

Sarah Paulson plays 'Mistress Epps’; her portrayal of the character was intriguing and complex. Her actions were obvious but her motive remained unclear. She had no humanity. She portrayed someone who appeared to be programmed, to be solely evil. Yet she desperately clings to new ways of inflicting intimidation and violence on not only the slaves but also by repeatedly attempting to manipulate her husband. Her shameless jealously towards Patsy is justifiable and just when you feel sorry for her..........she turns round and bam she throws a bottle at her head and then bam she scratches her face like a three year older toddler. Her performance was fascinating and I hope to see her in more films in the future.

 Guess what the biggest surprise was????Brad Pitt claimed the role of Samuel Bas the good white guy who hates slavery. Wow what a shocker no one saw that one coming .It gets better he plays the guy that helps Salomon to freedom. Pitt to the rescue yet again. I felt that his performance was superficial and a tad lazy.  He basically said his lines in a monotonous dreary voice and stared blankly at the screen.

Steve McQueen is a brilliant director. The cinematography was amazing my favourite shot was when the camera trails though the plantation. Gradually there is high angle as its peeps between the foliage and overlooks the slave’s .Ooh not forgetting the close up of the parasites nestling on the cotton plants as various hands reach to inspect it.This is the first McQueen film I have ever watched. I was greatly impressed by his ability to tell a meaningful story that provokes and demands the audience's attention. My tutor had watched the film prior to myself and she said that 'it made her ashamed to be white'. I disagreed with this the film speaks to everyone  of every race, tribe, tongue and nation.Its saying to people that if  you think this is wrong then  lets not repeat ourselves (easier said than done). The film is brutal yet necessary. It opens up the discussion about love and consideration for the well being of all humanity and that’s good. Rant over, anyway I enjoyed the film very much and I cannot wait to read the book. Go and watch it people, go and see what all the fuss is about and feel free to leave a comment below!!!I give it 10/10.