Modern day progenitors may be blamed for the "sins of the fathers" in this faithful adaptation of an 1853 slave memoir

Rating: 6/10 (15 November 2013)

Having read some excerpts from the book the film is based on, it appears that this is a very thorough adaptation of Solomon Northrup's original account which was written at the time of course as an expose-to sway northern conservatives who might have been on the fence concerning the horrors of slavery.

The danger here is that a "19th century" story can have a whole different meaning when presented in a modern day context. Director Steve McQueen already established himself as having a talented visual eye but also an unhealthy obsession with violence (his disappointing fictional effort, "Shame," focused on a protagonist's sexual fixation). Thus McQueen (in the grand style of Tarantino), may have been drawn to Northup's tale more for the salacious moments than explaining what slavery and its legacy was all about.

Similarly, screenwriter John Ridley, may have been attracted to the story in order to draw a parallel between what he perceives as modern day racism and the horrors of the past. Of course equating slavery with the "racism" of today is absurd as the physical subjugation of African-Americans was eliminated following President Lincoln's "Emancipation Proclamation" and codified into law with the 14th Amendment. Nonetheless, a story such as Northrup's, can still be used by writers like Ridley to intimidate rather than edify.

Northrup's story only focuses on the very worst aspects of slavery and for its time makes sense. But there is little sense here of the black man's triumph IN SPITE of the degradations they had to endure. The positive message (which reverberates today, for example, in many black churches) but is ignored in this film, leaves one wondering if Ridley's screenplay is designed more as agitprop than art.

The flip side of the coin is the deleterious effect the legacy of slavery had on the psyche of African-Americans throughout the years. Is it more important to make a movie simply about the horrors of slavery without discussing the effects of its legacy?

Despite these concerns as to the questionable motivations of the director and his screenwriter, in a limited sense, Northrup's story still features powerful moments which begin with the family man/musician's abduction by slave traders in 1841 Saratoga, NY. The break into the Second Act, which constitutes the beginning of Northrup's nightmare, is when he's sold into slavery down in New Orleans. The scene is doubly horrifying as Northrup witnesses the separation of two children from their mother, who are all sold into slavery.

The first half of Act II features heightening tension as Northrup is sold to a relatively kind but ineffectual plantation owner, William Ford, who treats him decently and even gives him a violin as a present. Ford recognizes that Northrup is educated (without questioning where he got his education) and allows him to assist in engineering a waterway for transporting logs downstream.

Nonetheless, Ford is unable to prevent the plantation overseer, the brutal racist Tibeats, from severely beating Northrup, who is almost lynched but prevented by the head overseer, who is afraid that Ford will lose his original $400 investment. Although Ford is the owner, Tibeats is really in control and settles on selling Northrup to another plantation owner, the even more brutal Edwin Epps.

Epps is a religious fundamentalist who reads Bible passages to his slaves but also beats them whenever he's in the mood. He's also a hypocrite, as he's sexually infatuated with a young slave, Patsey, whom he rapes and will not stop, despite his wife's constant entreaties. The jealous wife takes out all her hatred on poor Patsey too; in one powerful scene, she offers treats to all the slaves, except Patsey, who she strikes in the head in front of her husband, and a horrified Northrup and his fellow slaves.

Northrup's deliverance occurs in Act III when he meets a white man, Bass, a carpenter, who's doing a job for Epps and has abolitionist sentiments. Northrup is reluctant to tell Bass his story since earlier he was betrayed by a white worker on the plantation, after he attempts to convince the man to mail a letter for him, to alert his family and friends in New York. Northrup finally decides to trust Bass and things are set in motion, which leads to his freedom. Brad Pitt might not have been the best casting choice here but his character Bass's intervention proves to be one of the few positive moments in this very dour tale.

Chiwetel Ejiofor is excellent in the role of Northrup as he echoes the original author's restrained dignity. In one sense, McQueen and Ridley should be praised for resurrecting this "historical artifact." On the other hand, the narrative is limited and ignores both the positive and negative effect the legacy of slavery had on the descendants of its victims.

Instead, this antediluvian tale brings little or nothing positive to the modern-day debate about race relations wherein the "sins of the fathers" may be deemed morally equivalent by some misguided individuals, to what's going on today.