Review of 12 Years A Slave

After its 2013 release, 12 Year a Slave was nominated for 295 awards, winning 223 of these, including 3 Oscars, therefore is a world-renowned historical drama about slavery. Based on Solomon Northup’s memoirs, the film is an unapologetic account of the inhumane, brutal reality of slavery in the U.S, well-known for its difficulty to watch, due to the violence onscreen.

Previous to the release of 12 Years a Slave, actress Lupita Nyong’o was relatively unknown to the U.S. public, and the world, excluding her popularity in Kenya. However, after winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, she gained worldwide recognition for her outstanding performance as Patsey.

During the film, we see Patsey as the object of Epps’ affections, as well as his best cotton picker. As the plot progresses, Patsey is seen being raped, beaten, whipped and begging for Solomon to kill her. This emphasises not only the physical abuse of slaves, but also the sexual abuse by their owners.

One of the most notable scenes in the film would be Patsey’s whipping, in which Solomon is forced to whip his comrade, due to Epps’ cowardice. Sean Bobbitt commented on this scene, stating “That was always going to be one continuous shot…the audience is given no relief…the complexity of the emotions and the violence going on, it really acts to heighten the drama and the performance of the actors”. In this way, we can see that McQueen, and the producers worked to make this scene as uncomfortable as possible for the viewers; the disproportion of Patsey’s mistake versus her punishment (defending Solomon), the shame in her being stripped from her clothes and tied to a post, and Solomon’s unease to hit her hard enough, are all elements which completely shock the audience into the realisation that this was reality during that time in America.

On the other hand, however many argue that the film relied almost entirely on shock tactics, and unthinkable violence. Several critics compare it to the book, in this way, as in the film, we see Patsey beg Solomon to kill her, and release her from her misery, whereas in the memoirs of the actual Solomon Northup, he claimed that Patsey believed there was goodness in the world, and hoped for freedom. In addition to this, many claim that within the book, Solomon has a very complex relationship with Epps, and isn’t as negative and brutal as Fassbender portrayed him.

Therefore, despite how well 12 Years A Slave depicts the slave trade, over 150 years after emancipation, to a generation who live long after these events, many argue that the film doesn’t remain entirely true to Solomon’s actual life events, with superfluous violence, and incorrect characters. However, I believe that said over exaggeration was deemed necessary, in order to convey the brutality of the slave trade, to an audience who may be uneducated on the subject.