Vastly disappointing

Rating: 1/10 (12 March 2014)

I feel that a Best Picture Oscar winner should 1) be a film that you would recommend, and 2) be a film that you would watch again. "12 Years a Slave" is neither.
"12 Years a Slave" falls squarely in the torture-porn film genre like "Hostel" or "Passion of the Christ." So if you are into that kind of cinema, this may be a good film for you. If you like well-directed and well-written films with a strong narrative, plot, character development, sense of place, and historical context and meaning, then this film will disappoint you.
The last scene of the film when Solomon is reunited with his family is unbelievably bad but sums up the whole film: bad direction, bad writing, a big mistake and waste of acting talent.
For heavens sake, read the book and learn Solomon's story but avoid this disaster.