McQueen has created a cinematic masterpiece and a film that everyone needs to see!

Rating: 10/10 (14 November 2013)

'12 YEARS A SLAVE': Five Stars (Out of Five)
'12 YEARS A SLAVE' is now the top contender to win Best Picture (and many other awards) at this year's Oscars. It's about a free black man, named Solomon Northup, who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841 Washington, D.C.. He spent 12 years working on Louisiana plantations before he was freed. The film is based on the 1853 autobiography, of the same name, by Solomon Northup and was written by John Ridley. It was directed by Steve McQueen and stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Lupita Nyong'o, Paul Dano, Paul Giamatti, Sarah Paulson and Brad Pitt (who was also one of the film's producers). The movie deserves all the critical praise and award recognition it's been getting (and will receive) and is definitely one of the year's very best films (and a must see)!
The movie begins in 1841 Saratoga Springs, New York where Solomon Northup (Ejiofor, who's fantastic in the film) works as a carpenter and a very talented violin player. He has a wife (Kelsey Scott) and a young son (Cameron Zeigler) and daughter (Quvenzhané Wallis of 'BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD' fame). One day he meets two men (Scoot McNairy and Taran Killam) who claim to be touring musicians. They take him out drinking and offer him a high paying gig in their show. Solomon then wakes up to find himself in chains, realizing he had been drugged and sold into slavery. He spends the next twelve years working for two different plantation owners in Louisiana: William Ford (Cumberbatch) and Edwin Epps (Fassbender, who's a scene stealer and starred in McQueen's last two films as well). Northup gets along with Ford but finds himself in many confrontations with the sadistic and extremely abusive Epps. He befriends another younger female slave named Patsy (Nyong'o, who's amazing) who, despite being an excellent worker, is constantly beaten by Edwin and his wife (Paulson), due to the fact that she's the object of Mr. Epps affection (as he constantly rapes her as well).
The movie is extremely depressing and hard to watch (as it should be). It does build to an overwhelmingly emotional and satisfying conclusion though. All the same many will never go near a movie like this (because of it's violent and disturbing content) but it's definitely a movie that everyone (of a certain age) should see (in America at least). Some (of the racist nature) like to complain that movies like this are exploitative and prey on white guilt, making racial relations more difficult (they say). I disagree and think important events in history should never be forgotten or ignored. They should always be examined, and looked back on, despite how painful they might be. This movie bothered me for days (as I couldn't get several scenes from it out of head), it's like a true life historical horror story and the filmmakers did an excellent job of bringing it to life. That's why I think it deserves a perfect rating; because of how powerful and memorable it is (and how much it really sticks with you and affects you, long after it's over). I'd compare it's quality to something like 'SCHINDLER'S LIST' and even say it's a little better. It deals with very similar subject matter; slavery in the US (in the 1840s) was very much like what was going on in Germany (during World War II) with Jewish people (it is an American equivalent of almost the same crimes). You don't hear nearly as many complaints about how movies about the Holocaust are exploitative (when the same type of argument could be made). McQueen has created a cinematic masterpiece (whether some want to acknowledge it or not) and a film that everyone needs to see!
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