By ANDY GILCHRIST
Most people don’t really know anything about slavery. Sure, we all read about it in history textbooks back in high school and have seen a few faded black-and-white photographs of gaunt slaves working in fields. Some of us have even read Uncle Tom’s Cabin or some of Frederick Douglass’ writings.
But do any of us really know what slavery was? Do we know the fear and fatigue slaves felt every day? The physical and mental brutality they faced that made some of them just a collection of scars, both inside and out? The shrieks of a slave being whipped to the bone that could never leave your mind?
The new film 12 Years a Slave shows the unbelievable and sickening reality of slavery in the Deep South. Following one man’s life as a slave for a dozen years, the filmmakers pull no punches from start to finish. Whippings and hangings are frequent and shown in all their shameful glory. The process of breaking down a man from proudly free to near-total docility is examined closely. The white slave owners’ justifications for slavery are declared and exposed for their absurdity.
But beyond just the incredible nature of the story, every aspect of the film is breathtaking. The performances from the entire cast, especially those playing the slaves, are award-worthy. The directing, the writing, the set design; all of it makes the film not just very entertaining, but gives it a sense of authenticity. Though it is not the first film to feature slavery, it may be the most powerful ever made
on the subject.
The film follows Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free black family man living in Saratoga, New York. Promised employment by two white travelers, he is drugged, kidnapped, and sold into slavery. Initially sent to the Louisiana plantation of William Ford (Benedict Cumberbatch), Solomon quickly becomes the target of the plantation’s slave overseer, John Tibeats (Paul Dano).
Barely surviving his time there, Solomon is sold to notorious slave “breaker” Edwin Epps (Michael Fassbender). Epps is insanely racist and ruthless. To describe him as cruel is not enough. Fear pulses through the film anytime Epps shows up onscreen. Along with his equally coldblooded wife, Mary (Sarah Paulson), Epps does everything he can to destroy the will of Solomon. But the memory of Solomon’s wife and children back in New York allows him to survive, physically and mentally, until he can somehow find a way back to them.
12 Years a Slave is the newest film from emerging filmmaker Steve McQueen (no relation to the 60s/70s Hollywood megastar of the same name). Only his third effort after Hunger in 2008 and Shame in 2011, McQueen has already established himself as one of the most talented directors working today. His films display savage brutality juxtaposed with quiet moments of introspection. After tackling a real-life hunger strike in Hunger and sex addiction in Shame, McQueen now turns his eye towards the most raw material possible: slavery.
McQueen’s camera perfectly showcases the perverse existence of slavery in the South. There are numerous shots throughout the film of sunsets peeking through tree branches and the songs of birds and insects buzzing through nearly all of the film. The fact that such beautiful scenery surrounds such pure evil is disturbing. The idea that people of the day knew this and saw nothing wrong with it is nauseating. If there is any person on the planet still unaware of the evils of slavery, a viewing of this film will drive the point home.
Another aspect of McQueen’s strategy that makes his films even better are a huge trust in the actors. While the performances always drive a film, McQueen utilizes insanely long shots that put entire scenes on the shoulders of the actors in them. No editor can help when there are no breaks or alternate takes to tape together.
In this film, a shot that lasts 5-6 minutes follows Epps screaming at a slave who left the plantation without his permission and tying her to a post, before alternating between Epps and, by force, Solomon whipping her. The pain felt by the slave being whipped, the tears streaming down Solomon’s face, and the madness pulsating from Epps puts this scene at the top of an already difficult to watch collection of shots, but the acting makes this one the best sequence in the film.
And enough cannot be said of these actors. Chiwetel Ejiofor gives a career-best performance as Solomon, ranging from overwhelmed fear after he is sold to unprecedented bravery as the years drag on. Every time he cries, it’s obvious the tears aren’t fake; whether it’s a single tear crawling down his cheek or a stream of them, you believe the emotion.
Early in the film, a scene where Solomon tells a woman to stop crying for her lost children showcases Ejiofor’s acting talent. Moving from harsh explanation of the importance of keeping one’s head down in order to survive to almost screaming at the woman when she accuses him of not caring about his own children back home, Ejiofor displays sorrow, rage, and everything in between in just one scene, showing just how good of an actor he is.
Michael Fassbender must also be singled out. Making it three for three with McQueen, after starring in Hunger and Shame, Fassbender here takes the most important supporting role and makes it almost as engrossing as Solomon. Epps’ madness is on display every time he’s on screen, whether it’s calmly explaining why a slave must be whipped, putting his arm around Solomon and softly asking him to explain why he shouldn’t kill him, or losing his mind when something is not done correctly. It is the most fear-inducing performance in recent memory because on top of his unpredictable and violent behavior, this was a real person once. And that’s the scariest part of all.
12 Years a Slave is a difficult film to watch. The real-world violence that was the norm of the pre-Civil War South is shown in its purest form; nothing is held back. But the heartbreaking performances given by the cast and the masterful direction make it a film that needs to be seen. As the awards season films begin to appear in theaters, a frontrunner has appeared.
