'12 Years a Slave' Is Hauntingly Beautiful

Rating: 10/10 (1 January 2014)

In the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery. Given a new name of 'Platt', Solomon is beaten by anyone whom he told he was free. For twelve years, Solomon faces immense cruelty, such as from slave-owner Edwin Epps (Michael Fassbender), and struggles to keep hope, dignity, and his life.
Hollywood doesn't show many films on slavery often, yet we have managed to have two big ones in the last two years: Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained and now Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave. Django, last year's bloody southern-western, sets slavery as the backdrop with a fantastical narrative that features plenty of revenge and entertainment while still dealing with the dark time period. Slave, on the other hand, grabs your head and holds it toward the screen— forcing you to acknowledge the horrors of our past.
Slave is an emotionally exhausting experience due to the fact that McQueen never dares to let up behind the camera. He and cinematographer Sean Bobbitt frame each shot beautifully amidst the ugly actions in the scenes. McQueen's close-ups of Solomon—either singing, crying, or thinking —are immensely powerful visuals of a man who in his current situation has no power. In one heart rendering scene involving Epps forcing Solomon to whip a fellow slave, McQueen films it in one breathtaking continuous shot making the audience see every emotion on each actor's face uninterrupted.
The performances in Slave are all exemplary with standouts Ejiofor and Fassbender emitting such intensity in every scene. Fassbender makes Epps a man of true evil; he sees his slaves as "his propertyno better than a dog." He erupts into anger and violence at the drop of his hat, and his wife (Sarah Paulson) is just as masochistic as he is. Ejiofor is devastating as Solomon; the scenes where he is silent and alone are some of most commanding ones in all the film. He is changed from a loving family man into a beaten soul, but his eyes never lose the hope to once again be free.
Slave may be a harrowing experience, but it is an absolute crucial must-see. Not since Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List twenty years ago has a film shown history in such a haunting and unforgettable way. This film, while very brutal, is an incredible story of human spirit when it, as Solomon says, doesn't want to survive, but live.