12 Years a Slave

by Meg Sugden

Probably one of the hardest films to watch out of McQueen's true story tributes, 12 Years A Slave is a powerful and  brilliantly told true story based off the writings of Solomon Northup, a free man making an honest living as a musician. The story then follows as he is viciously sold into the slavery market and taken from place to place working until he can't work no more. The heartbreaking films offers insight into the ways of Americans in the height of the slave industry and shows the horror of just how brutal it was. The pinocle point of the film actually makes us see into the daily lives of the slave trade and how humiliating it would have been on a daily basis and how traumatising it would have been to be beaten for no reason and forced to work as there lives depended on it.

Once again we see Steve McQueen at his finest, proving that he truly is the King of taking a true story and turning it into a wonderful masterpiece of film, and 12 Years A Slave definitely lives up to his reputation. The film has the ability to take you on a roller coaster of a ride, offering scenes of happiness as we see him with his family in the freedom of his life, to being transported on a steamboat to Louisiana, having to change his name and being in cramped and confined conditions. We then feel the heartbreak of what he's actually going through, being torn apart from his family and having to be on his own, sold into slavery and looking after others in the same position around him. Its a tough watch, especially as we see him arrive at the homes of where he will spend the next twelve years

To begin with we see him on Benedict Cumberbatch's estate in which there are many problems but he managed to find a comfortable spot working on the river and providing new ways of farming on the Louisiana bayou, to be rewarded generously with a violin and the chance to play music again. But things start to go wrong, and the overseer abuses him for no reason forcing Master Ford (Cumberbatch) to kick him off the farm and take him elsewhere with great regret. But whilst on the farm we witness probably one of the most powerful scenes in the whole film as we see Solomon (Chiwetel Ejiofor) being hung for his crimes but left with his feet just touching the floor. This then leads to the longest wait in film where we stare at this man being punished for no reason other than being a black man. Watching him struggle to stand while the daily life goes on behind him is so tough and difficult to watch, as nobody appears to care about him which leads to a scene of him struggling to reach the floor that lasts for about 3 minutes, while all the time there is no music, only the sound of pain and suffering.

When taken to the next farm, is where we are introduced to Edwin Epps (Michael Fassbender), an interesting character who takes an instant dislike to him, forcing more pain and suffering for again doing nothing. Again during this time we find it difficult to watch as we start to see the lashings and McQueen does not beat around the bush, as we see not only Solomon get beat, but also a young girl, which is a scene that captivates the audience and shows just how brutal the slave trade actually was, and how everyone just went along with it, because that was hows things where. Each scenes that are set on this farm are difficult to stomach, but this farm also offers the highlight of the film; seeing Bass (Brad Pitt). Bass is a humble worker who is hired to build on the farm with the help of Solomon. They get talking and he reveals that he is a freeman and not a slave worker, he tells him his real name and asks him for his help. As we have already seen previously how help from outsiders can go wrong this does not offer us much hope, but as we see the carriage pull up at the end with Solomon's shop keeper friend in it, we feel so much hope and heartbreak at the same time as we know it is time for him to go home.

The film is definitely one that I would recommend as it is a incredible and heartbreaking story of a man who has every right to be in the world but gets everything taken away from him and beaten just because the colour of his skin. The story is beautifully told by Steve McQueen and couldn't have been told better. Its a whirlwind of emotion running throughout the film and makes you feel everything, which is so difficult to put into just one film. The brutality of some of the scenes would upset even the strongest of stomachs but knowing that he managed to get out of it in the end, means everything as we see him reunited with his family after 12 long, and unnecessary years as a slave.