And the Best Picture is...12 Years a Slave | A Review


A brilliant portrayal of a free man's journey to being a slave, for 12 long years. When I watched the movie the first time, I thought it was a bit of a drag. Felt guilty about the thought almost immediately. 


A man, Solomon Northup, a gifted fiddle player from New York, gets kidnapped and sold to slavery. With a new name, Platt, and beaten to accept his  forced identity, Solomon continues to fight for his real name and freedom. Nobody believes when he screams that he is a free man. Sold several times over to rich plantation owners in New Orleans, Solomon spends his time tending to his wounds and thinking up ways to escape the hell. 


He impresses and befriends his first plantation 'owner' Ford and immerses himself in building a network of friends. Then there is Patsey, another slave who is sexually abused and tortured many times over by the owner. 

When a Canadian laborer named Bass (Brad Pitt) comes to the plantation to help build a gazebo, Solomon takes his help to get out. After a few months of more melancholy and hopelessness, Solomon's friend, the Sheriff comes to get him out. 

When Solomon steps into his house in New York, after 12 long years, the trepidation and the nervousness and the eventual subdued euphoria on his arrival is beautifully captured on screen. 

 Chiwetel Ejiofor has given a fantastic performance as the reluctant slave, Solomon. 

 12 Years a Slave is a must watch for everyone who has a false notion of being a free person in a free world.  

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