12 Years A Slave

2014 • 134 minutes

About this movie

From acclaimed director Steve McQueen comes the incredible true story of one man's fight for survival and freedom. It is 1841 and Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery. Stripped of his identity and deprived of all dignity, Northup is purchased by ruthless plantation owner Edwin Epps (Michael Fassbender) and must find the strength within to survive. In his twelfth year in captivity, a chance meeting with a Canadian abolitionist (Brad Pitt) forever alters his life. Filled with powerful performances by an outstanding cast, 12 Years A Slave is both an unflinching account of slavery and a celebration of the power of hope. - 2013 Bass Films, LLC and Monarchy Enterprises S.a.r.l. All Rights Reserved.

Ratings and reviews

McQueen's attention to depth and detail amongst his leading cast is sadly undermined by some short sighted stereotyping and a surprisingly narrow plot. This account, however faithful it may be to real events, lacks any real dramatic development and it's linear sequencing relies heavily on careful cinematography to move it along. It only succeeds in its' efforts to animalise the plantation classes and humanise the slaves with violence. Some good performances but the script is bad and the story is dull.

A very good historically correct film depicting a part of the past that has still not being told fully,the actors put across the event's of those times with such energy and precision,you felt the blows as one of the slave's was beaten by the slaver, then buy the slave him self, how him self was mad a slave.Brad Pitt part was small but you could see how the American civil war came about, just listen to his character reasoning with the slaver as he tried to show him that what he was doing fundamentally wrong.

All a bit clichéd. Whites can do no good. Blacks are all noble, thoughtful. I thought we'd left these PC stereotypes in the 1990's. A shame really. It could be a great movie, but the cardboard characterisations are rather tiresome and spoil things.