Up for the Oscars: 12 Years a Slave

Review: 12 Years a Slave (15) Running time 134 minutes
Rating: *****
What with the Japanese behaving abominably towards British prisoners of war in The Railway Man, and now white people behaving similarly to black people in 12 Years a Slave, the portrayal of humanity in terms of getting on with each other seems to have reached a new low in the world of film. There is, of course, plenty of evidence in the real world that humankind is not very good at rubbing along together on this crowded planet – Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, even the current examples seem endless. However, before we get too depressed about this (next week the review will be a comedy, I hope), we need to stand back and marvel for a moment at the craft and artistry of 12 Years a Slave. Based on the 1853 book by Solomon Northup, it is the true story of a strong and resourceful man born free in the United States, but kidnapped and sold into slavery, where he remained as a field hand for 12 years. During that time, he was beaten regularly, humiliated and cast down from an educated, talented man, to nothing more than a beast of burden with no right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. His white Southern owners emerge as, at best decent people, troubled by the suffering of black people, but not prepared to do anything about it, to malevolent, sadistic perverts who inflicted pain for pleasure. The only decent white man was a Canadian, Bass (Brad Pitt) who helped him. Solomon is played by outstanding British actor Chiwetel Ejiofor, who brings a dignified and determined will to live to the role, helped by the sensitive direction of Steve McQueen, who has a notable record as a director and as an artist. Perhaps inevitably, the film is full of cruelty – beating, whipping, lynching and sexual predation, but portrayed in the same matter-of-fact way that such actions were used in Georgia, pre-American Civil War. As the character Bass says at one point to Solomon’s last owner, Ebbs: “There is a sickness at the heart of this nation, and one day soon there will come a reckoning.” The picture though is restrained and dignified – as was Solomon himself – allowing us to believe that there might be some hope for humankind after all. But before we British start feeling righteously angry at how a nation could tolerate such an evil, remember that there are some fine families in this country, with grand homes and titles, whose wealth was born out of the slave trade in the 18th century, many going on later to assuage past ills through philanthropy and good works. Already nominated for a number of Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor, 12 Years a Slave is tipped as a hot favourite for top honours, alongside another largely British film, Gravity.