The new movie 12 Years a Slave (2013) dramatically recreates the true events from Solomon Northup’s 1853 autobiography of the same name. The story recounts how Northup, living as a free man in New York, was tricked into traveling to Washington, D.C., where he was abducted and sold into slavery.
In describing the film, one has to be careful not to ruin the story, but like the miniseries Roots (1977) or the movie Schindler’s List (1993), you sort of know what to expect when you decide to watch it. Not surprisingly, the movie features scenes of nearly unwatchable brutality, and generally the line between good guys and bad guys is clear, and the bad people are really bad.
Yet, there are two main reasons to see 12 Years a Slave. One reason is the fine performers, especially actor Chiwetel Ejiofor, who portrays Northup, bringing a complicated humanity to the man. Ejiofor makes Northup a three-dimensional human being that helps the audience understand the man’s agony as he discovers his fate and struggles to find a way home. In more than one scene, Director Steve McQueen lets the camera linger on Eliofor’s face and eyes, relying upon the actor to carry a scene without movement or dialogue. Eliofor, who has made small parts memorable in such movies as Children of Men (2006) and Love Actually (2003), here shows that he is an actor who should be commanding more lead roles. Similarly, other performers like Lupita Nyong’o as Patsey (who the New Yorker calls the hero of the film) and Michael Fassbender as an unstable slave owner are outstanding. Producer Brad Pitt also makes a welcome appearance.
The other main reason to see 12 Years a Slave is that it is a true story. Were the movie fictional, it would carry less gravitas and in some ways would border on unbelievable. But the movie, with a screenplay by John Ridley, presents an essential reminder of the American legacy of slavery and how humans can treat each other in immoral and brutal ways.
Although in the past I have written how I hate when movies manipulate viewers into cheering for violence against characters, while watching 12 Years a Slave, I found myself longing for Jamie Foxx as Django from Django Unchained (2012) to suddenly appear and render his bloody justice. But unfortunately 12 Years a Slave is not a fantasy, and real life does not end so neatly.
Conclusion: 12 Years a Slave is essential viewing. The high Rotten Tomatoes rating (critics: 97%; audience: 94%) may partly reflect how a movie with such a subject is beyond criticism, but it also reflects powerful filmmaking.
Bonus Real-Life Information (Spoiler Alert: Do Not Read If You Have Not Seen the Movie): For some reason, one of the most moving moments in the movie for me was the epilogue where the titles explained what happened to Northup. I found it disturbing that nobody knows what happened to him. Wikipedia explains that some people believe that he may have been kidnapped into slavery again, apparently dying in anonymity on a Southern plantation. Others believe that he died of natural causes in the North. I choose to believe the latter because the former is too horrible to imagine. And so I pray that Northup’s final line in his book came true: “I hope henceforward to lead an upright though lowly life, and rest at last in the church yard where my father sleeps.”
What did you think of 12 Years a Slave? Leave your two cents in the comments.
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