Back Rowe Reviews
Real Time Movie Reviews from the Back Row of a Theater

12 Years a Slave (R)

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Directed by: Steve McQueen
Starring: Chiwetel Ejiofor
November 2013

This review was originally tweeted in Real-time from the back row of a movie theater and appears @BackRoweReviews. Though efforts were made to tease rather than ruin this movie’s memorable lines and moments, some spoilers may exist in the following evaluation. The original tweets appear in black, while follow-up comments appear in red. For concerns over objectionable content, please first refer to one of the many parental movie guide websites. All ratings are based on a four star system. Happy reading!

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The N word is used in the first line of dialog. Could be a rough film to stomach.

The horizontal mambo is filmed horizontally. Fitting.

Waking up in chains. Apparently there’s no such thing as a free dinner.

Giamatti sells slaves to the ubiquitous Cumberbatch.
C’Batch washed the bleach out of his hair for this one.

“You are no better than prized livestock.” Woah!
A bit of jealousy perhaps?

The letter goes up in flames...and hope of freedom along with it.
Just when things couldn’t get any worse.

Pitt challenges Fassbender on what is true and right. Some great dialog in this scene.

The whipping sequence is unbearable.
Not quite as unconscionably inhumane as the scourging in The Passion of the Christ (2004), but horrific just the same.

From Platt back to Solomon.
What a difference a name makes.

Final analysis: a difficult movie to navigate emotionally.

Not an enjoyable entertainment, but an educational one.

Rating:
3 out of 4 stars. Fine acting and directing, but rough subject matter makes it difficult to watch.

It goes without saying that this isn’t popcorn entertainment, so it’s suggested that one be in the right mood or state of mind when subjecting oneself to the more uncomfortable or objectionable aspects of this film. The historical attention to detail here is staggering and the overall production is fittingly praise-worthy. The story is compelling and the acting is superb, especially Chiwetel Ejiofor as main character Solomon Northrup. This is the kind of story that can very easily feel like a dramatized documentary, but fortunately, director Steve McQueen (not the guy who jumped the barbed wire fence on a motorcycle) turns the historical events into a riveting drama. This is edutainment at its finest.