On October 18th, 12 Years A Slave (directed by Steve McQueen) came out on limited release, including showings in our very own Edwards University Town Center 6. Based on the true story of Solomon Northup (played by Chiwetel Ejiofor), this film details the horrifying journey of a free, black violinist in the early 1800s who is kidnapped from his home state of New York and sold into slavery. It has been hailed as the first “real” (“12 Years A Slave”) tale of slavery in the United States, unveiling slavery as “the unrelenting horror that it was,” (Goodyknootz) and serves as a… “prickly renegade that restores your faith in the harsh power of movies” (Travers). Most reviews for this movie say the exact same thing: Everything that we have learned about slavery has been watered-down and sugar-coated, and this is the first film that dares to tell it like it was.
These commentaries are more than a bit misleading.
I did not hear much about this movie until the weekend before it’s release, when a friend of mine came to me with all of these opinions, wide-eyed with her excitement and gushing over the behind-the-scenes details of 12 Years A Slave’s production. Every few hours, she would conjure up another fact, or quote another review for me. Finally, I saw the trailer and was completely on board. Though I tried to caution myself against it, the hype was not easy to get out of my mind.
Two of my friends and I bought our tickets on a Tuesday evening, expecting to leave the theater traumatized, but intellectually provoked and emotionally impacted for the rest of our lives. I hate to be the one to tell you this, but that did not happen.
12 Years A Slave is not a bad movie by any stretch of the imagination. The acting is strong all-around, the viewer sits through cringe-worthy acts of violence, the editing is jarring and beautiful, and there are many moments where one finds him/herself holding one’s breath. This film is great, but not nearly as incredible or emotionally-charged as many reviews build it up to be.
Very little about this movie felt particularly ground-breaking within this genre. Though it certainly does not make it easier to watch, many other stories have detailed gruesome whippings, unwarranted punishments, and dehumanizing executions. It is still heartbreaking to see these violent acts unfold on the big screen. But 12 Years A Slave did not feel more heartbreaking or more gut-wrenching than other portrayals of slavery.
The only innovative issue explored in 12 Years A Slave is the “relationship” between one of the slave-owners (Michael Fassbender) and one of the slaves, Patsey (Lupita Nyong’o). Patsey, like many black slaves during this time, is continually raped by her slave-owner, and is continually punished for it by his misguided and jealous wife (Sarah Paulson). Throughout the film, Patsey is subjected to the cruelest and, arguably, the most horrifying acts of violence. Sexual assault against black women is a topic that is explored both visually on-screen and through dialogue. One woman at the beginning of Solomon Northup’s nightmare tells him of her prevailing sense of shame after her own sexual assault, which resulted in the birth of one of her children. Later on, Solomon interrupts a conversation between Patsey and another black woman on a plantation (Alfre Woodard), who has used her master’s “favor” to gain luxuries for herself in an effort to survive as comfortably as possible. And, as previously mentioned, we see Patsey’s experiences with dehumanizing violence unfold over years. 12 Years A Slave opens the door for more discussion on the dynamics of sexual violence against black slaves.
But I wish it had gone one step further. I wish Patsey was the main character of this film.
True, 12 Years A Slave is based on the true story of Solomon Northup, and so he is inherently the protagonist of this portrayal. It is hard to get around that. But as it stands, it does not feel like the ground-breaking take on racially-based slavery that it has been made out to be. Had the focus been shifted from Solomon to Patsey, perhaps it would not have fallen so short of my expectations.
**SPOILER AHEAD**
If this movie were told from the eyes of Patsey, the film’s conclusion would be devastating. After watching Solomon be rescued (this is not really a spoiler, but a historical fact), the viewer would then be forced to stay with Patsey on the plantation to experience torture for another day. I feel that this would have made 12 Years A Slave truly the most “real” story of slavery. Though Solomon’s story is incredible, it is the exception to an overwhelming trend of daily dehumanization and murder that persisted in our country for years. For most black slaves before the Civil War, there was no happy ending. The film would have been much more effective if each audience member left the theater with that solemn and disturbing fact in mind.
But, as it stands, 12 Years A Slave is a great film that stands just shy of revolutionary.
REFERENCES:
“12 Years A Slave.” Web log post. TheMovieReport.com. N.p., 4 Oct. 2013. Web. 2 Nov. 2013. <http://themoviereport.com/movierpt2013-10b.html#12>
Goodykoontz, Bill. “‘12 Years a Slave,’ 5 Stars.” AZCentral.com. The Republic, 31 Oct. 2013. Web. 2 Nov. 2013. <