Kind of disappointing

Rating: 5/10 (18 January 2017)

12 Years a Slave goes straight for the shock effect. Solomon, a supposedly sensitive, intelligent, kind violinist and family-man is captured to be shipped and sold as a slave. In roughly ten minutes the movie shows how good he had it and then how bad it becomes. Meaning you can almost do without anything that comes after that. People trick him with the promise he can play the violin in a circus, he wakes up in cuffs and is beaten relentlessly. He's sold several times. Meanwhile Solomon tries to distinguish himself from fellow slaves in a manner that isn't particularly sympathetic. He's whipped a lot, others are whipped a lot, some die and all is shown very explicitly. Then, in the last 15 minutes or so, Brad Pitt turns up and saves the day. That's basically the whole darn thing in a nutshell.
In my opinion the end seems sloppy and rushed. Secondly - and most importantly - the story line would've had more meaning to it, if it would've been portrayed with more subtlety and would've been less about going from one beating to the next. It gives the impression this movie is just to shock and provoke, instead of inciting any feelings, or thoughts. If you look at a film like "La Vita E Bella", you know even just hints can make one feel misery, heartbreak and despair much stronger than if you spell it out. When a film triggers our imagination, one feels moved and touched, with all the emotions belonging to a certain situation. Unless you want to numb the viewer, instead of getting him/her emotionally involved. In that case, this movie was perfect.