12 YEARS A SLAVE
R
134 Minutes
Director: Steve McQueen
Writers: John Ridley (screenplay), Solomon Northup
Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael K. Williams, Michael Fassbender
CAST
Chiwetel Ejiofor…Solomon Northup
Dwight Henry…Uncle Abram
Dickie Gravois…Overseer
Bryan Batt…Judge Turner
Ashley Dyke…Anna
Paul Dano…Tibeats
Brad Pitt…Bass
Born free and life is worth living
But only worth living
‘Cause you’re born free
BORN FREE, Andy Williams
To answer your question: this film is not about my public school experience. Although Solomon Northup was much like me, born in New York. But our similarities end there. Well, maybe there’s a bit more than that. We’re both strikingly handsome, well-endowed, human males, that were born free. The difference is that I’m not African-American, and no one has kidnapped, and forced me into slavery…yet. But slavery was Solomon’s fate. Technically, he was illegally enslaved. But for the record, I believe that all slaves were illegally enslaved, as controversial as that opinion may seem.
‘That’s not America! That’s not even Mexico.’
There isn’t much wrong with this film. Aside from the plantation owners being painted with a broad brush. I don’t know, I wasn’t alive back then. But I’m certain they can’t all be that bad.
Characters
The preacher from THERE WILL BE BLOOD, plays such a convincing racist, that even Paula Deen would tell him to take it easy.
You wonder how all the actors got, and stayed into character. I can just see it now, Paul Giamatti yelling racial slurs at the Long John Silver’s catering crew.
The plantation owners wife is a total bitch, with a capital cunt. Probably the most ruthless person in this movie. Just because her husband is sleeping with a slave, doesn’t mean that slave needs to get sent to another plantation.
Brad Pitt shows up toward the end. He’s the noble, super-chill guy, that works at a plantation. This character wasn’t really necessary, but it was nice to get a break from all the angry, intense characters.
Now Wait One, Cotton-Pick’n-Second
The actors in 12 YEARS do a fine job playing slaves. And that’s very important for this type of movie. Because some people are not suited for portraying slaves on-screen. For example, Robert Downey Jr would be a bad slave. That is, unless you used full, TROPIC THUNDER makeup. On a related note, I think some actors would make better slave owners than others. Leonardo DiCaprio and Foghorn Leghorn are ideal examples. But someone like Mark Ruffalo wouldn’t fit the part. In this film, I didn’t think Michael Fassbender would play such a convincing plantation owner. Being English and all, nonetheless, Fassbender was impressive.
This is different from other slave movies. It’s more authentic, because the story isn’t told through the eyes of a white person. 12 YEARS A SLAVE feels like a more modern version of ROOTS, without O.J. Simpson.
12 YEARS is the ultimate, feel-bad-movie-of-the-year. So it doesn’t call for repeated viewings. But fa reelz, check this shiznit out, it’s off the chain.
Final Verdict: 95 out of 100
