12 Years A Slave

Rating: 9/10 (13 April 2014)

12 Years a Slave is based on an incredible true story of one man's fight for survival and freedom. It is gripping and brutal, a typical Steve McQueen film. It is a film that reveals the pain and torture slaves were put through in pre-civil war United States. The film has a terrific acting cast,Brad Pitt, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Lupita Nyong'o, Michael Fassbender and Benedict Cumberbatch are a few of the names among them. Again for me, the performance of Michael Fassbender stands out. He plays the part of Edwin Epps, a malevolent slave owner who gets pleasure from abusing the slaves he owns. Fassbender is known for playing very complex and what I consider very difficult roles in his acting career and for me, this is one of the most difficult. However, as usual he pulls off the part perfectly and makes it believable that he is the person he is playing, that is why he is my favourite actor of all time. Visually the film is stunning with great colours and great shots which is typical of a Steve McQueen film. It is a film that makes you flinch because of the brutality, but it is extremely impressive in the way that it reveals the truth, however harsh it is, it must be realised and remembered.