12 YEARS A SLAVE - Review

12 Years a Slave

Historical Drama, 2013
2 hours, 13 minutes
Written by John Ridley
Directed by Steve McQueen
Rated R for "violence/cruelty, some nudity, and brief sexuality"

Starring
Chiwetel Ejiofor
Michael Fassbender
Lupita Nyong'o
Brad Pitt
Sarah Paulson
Benedict Cumberbatch
Paul Dano
Paul Giamatti


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


As the credits rolled and the lights came up, I found myself unable to compose myself. I could not stand. I could not breathe. My stomach and chest were tingling. I had to sit for a couple of minutes before I could stand and wipe the tears running down my face.
12 Years a Slave is nothing short of a masterpiece. It is, without question, the best film of the year thus far. There are so many aspects that make this film so perfect. Everything, ranging from the performances right down to the subtle execution of the sound design.
12 Years a Slave is the true story of Solomon Northrup, a free black man living with a loving family in New York. He is an exceptionally well-educated man and an accomplished violinist. He cares deeply for his family. One day, he is kidnapped and sold into slavery. From there, he spends 12 years working for various slave owners before he is freed. It's truly an incredible story.
The performances are remarkable. Comprised of a mostly European cast led by Chiwetel Ejiofor and Michael Fassbender, pretty much anyone in this film could win an award for their acting. The cast is surprisingly star-studded. Brad Pitt, Paul Giamatti, Paul Dano, and Benedict Cumberbatch have smaller, but important roles in the film. And they're all fantastic. There's so much more that I can say about the acting in this film, but I don't have the patience, or the words, to express how I feel.
It's also insanely brutal. There's whipping, beating, choking, hanging, stabbing, and a whole lot of despair. The sound of the whips actually made me physically wince to the rhythm of the crack, something that's never happened before. I cried more than once. I wept at the end. No other movie has made me cry more than once. There has been a comparison to Schindler's List in it's accurate portrayal of persecution of a group of people. By many, it's been called the Schindler's List of films about slavery. And they're not wrong. Not only is it incredibly accurate and difficult to watch, but it's also incredibly well made in almost every single facet.
I've spent too much time already talking about this. I don't know what else I'm supposed to say at this point. I just don't have all of the words. Just please, please see this movie. If you have to see any movie this year, it's 12 Years a Slave. I still have a few movies I have to see before the year is up, but right now, this stands at #1. This film will not be easily forgotten. It's an incredible accomplishment in filmmaking and deserves to be called one of the finest films ever made.

10/10



*EDIT: Just added a couple of comments at the bottom that I forgot to put in there.