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It is not the fault of the slaveholder that he is cruel, so much as it is the fault of
the system under which he lives. He cannot withstand the influence of habit and
associations that surround him. Taught from earliest childhood, by all that he
sees and hears that the rod is for the slave's back, he will not be apt to change
his opinions in maturer years. Solomon Northup, Twelve Years a Slave

Based on an incredible true story of one man's fight for survival and freedom. In
the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free black
man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery. Facing cruelty
(personified by a malevolent slave owner, portrayed by Michael Fassbender), as
well as unexpected kindnesses, Solomon struggles not only to stay alive, but to
retain his dignity. In the twelfth year of his unforgettable odyssey, Solomon's
chance meeting with a Canadian abolitionist (Brad Pitt) will forever alter his life.
- Written by Fox Searchlight
12 YEARS A SLAVE FILM REVIEW & OSCAR
PREVIEW 1-15-2014
1-15-2014 - Written By: David L. $Money Train$ Watts Journalist/Film Reviewer
FuTurXTV & HHBMedia.com - David Velo Stewart Editor HHBMedia.com
I want to first start of my review of 12 Years a Slave by saying that I had been waiting
almost a year to see it to wash the negative, foul and disgusting taste of Quentin
Tarantinos Django Unchained out of my mind. I know Django made over $100 Million
in the U.S. at the box office. I know a lot of Black film academics like USCs Todd Boyd
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went well out of their way to write special Weinstein Co. promoted op-ed pieces saying
Django Unchained was better than Rootsto reinforce the notion that Tarantino had
created the greatest slave film masterpiece ever. And I even know millions upon millions
of Black moviegoers who were huge fans of Djangomyself not included. But despite
all the hype and PR nonsense that Django Unchained stirred up last year I was quietly
waiting to see director Steve McQueens adaptation of Solomons Northups powerful
book 12 Years A Slave. Before I even saw the first image of 12 Years a Slave I knew it
was going to be better than Django Unchained because Lionsgate never pushed or
mounted a fake media and social media PR campaign that 12 Years a Slave was the
most authentic, realistic or ultimate slavery film. Nope, sometimes a straight dramatic
narrative that is filled with honest emotions and well written dialogue is always the best
way to tell a story based on real events or people in my opinion. And since 12 Years a
Slave is based on a true story that is why in the long run it will make it an early favorite
to win an Oscar for Best Picturejust like it did at the 2014 Golden Globe Awards.
What I really liked about 12 Years a Slave is how Chiwetel Ejiofor powerful and
passionate performance really drags a modern viewer into the world of slavery like it
has never been done before in Hollywood. And what I mean is that whether you have
seen The Legend Of Nigger Charley (1972), Mandingo (1975), Roots (1977),
Amistad, (1997), Beloved (1998), Django Unchained (2012), etc., we have typically
started with the main Black slave protagonist being a captured slave from Africa. I can
say that one of the most unexplored parts of American History on screen are actually
free Blacks who in fact were never born into slavery, bought their way out of slavery or
had no direct experience with the everyday horrors of slavery. I will note that Glory
(1989) did have a mixture of lead Black characters who were free Black men and former
slaves that joined the Union Army. Hollywood has always tried to propagate a myth that
America has always been a racial democracy who has endured a spattering of Southern
based racism. But what 12 Years a Slave does extremely well is let viewers experience
an unspoken fear that no Black man, woman or child in America was safe from
Southern slaveryeven if they lived in the North. What happens to Solomon Northup
and could have happened to hundreds of thousands of other free African-Americans
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during the early and mid-1800s was really wholesale identity theft. It was not bad
enough that the United States was systematically raping Africa of its citizens to come
work for life thousands of miles awayif they survived the journey. But there was also a
thriving and profitable market in the USA of kidnapping and enslaving free Blacks. And
the film pointedly captures the irony that one of the countrys most vile and illegal slave
pens was openly operating in the heart of our nations capital in Washington D.C. The
real cinematic importance to me of 12 Years a Slave is that it shows that unstoppable,
arrogance, and greed of Southern slave capitalism was destroying not only the external
image of America as a new democracy, but even the most optimistic beliefs that without
the immediate end of slavery there would never be a truly free Black person in America.
Steve McQueens 12 Years a Slave has done the Herculean or almost impossible task
of taking a dramatic slave narrative to heights that no one can dismiss or say they had
ever saw before in previous Hollywood or foreign slave themed film or TV docudrama.

Now after stating the undisputed importance of 12 Years a Slave--it is beyond any film
critic debate or social media doubt campaign that the film will garner a Best Picture
nomination. And I list in order of importance the films other notable Oscar nominations:
Best Director for Steve McQueen because honestly no moment of 12 Years a Slave is
wasted or lacking in significance from the opening shots to closing credits. Best Actor
for Chiwetel Ejiofor as Solomon Northrup because Chiwetel had to deliver a restrained
and measured performance as a free Black man who was deeply believed he was
entitled to the same protections and rights that afford any white men of his era. Once
Solomon finally accepted his reluctant fate of being a slave we had to primarily rely on
Chiwetels masterful acting of carefully articulating the amount of anger, frustration and
desperation it took to survive as a slave. Best Supporting Actress for Lupito Nyongo
as Patsey because youve rarely seen such an excellent portrayal from a new actor.
Lupito gives us Patsey a proud woman of color who knows her true value as a cotton
picking prodigy and who would rather die than be treated with no more respect than a
farm animal. Best Supporting Actor for Michael Fassbender because the naked
honesty and unflinching cruelty of the slave master Edwin Epps was more believable
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and most likely more representative of all slave masters than anyone truly wants to
contemplate or accept. Best Adapted Screenplay by John Ridley because the dialect
in 12 Years a Slave was always authentic, relatable and devoid of contrived clichs and
pretentious speeches. Best Cinematography to Sean Bobbit for beautifully capturing
all the majestic plantation scenery with as much detail as the savage brutal slave
whipping of Patsey. Furthermore, Bobbit should be commend for getting all the dark,
light and multi-hued skin tones of the African-American actors in the most realistic and
natural light. It may sound silly, but it is not given even in 2014 that a major Hollywood
film with a large cast of dark skinned minority or African-American actors will always be
shot correctly. Best Production Design for Adam Stochausen & Alice Baker and Best
Costume Design for Patricia Norris because one of the best aspects of 12 Years a
Slave are the small details like the starkness of the slave shacks and Slaves simple
clothing. And the bleakness and realism of the films production design and costumes
were brought out so forcefully when Patsey is willing to risk being beaten to death
because she dared sneak off Edwins plantation to borrow scraps of soap because she
smelled so bad she could not even take it anymore. And my last Oscar nomination Best
Original Score should go to 12 Years a Slaves Hans Zimmer for creating many
stirring, delicate and complimentary period musical interludes throughout the film. Now
whether 12 Years a Slave can actually run the table and actually garner ten valid and
highly deserved Oscar nominations is not so much as a long shot when one considers
that last year Django Unchained got five Oscar nods and won 2 for Best Original
Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor. But I do know that even if 12 Years a Slave
gets showered with Oscar love it will have heavyweight competition from American
Hustle and Gravity that will be competing with the film in virtually all of those same ten
Oscar categories. I will breakdown all the Oscar drama, soon enough. But I am sure
many Black folks will be tweeting and posting on Facebook about how American
Hustle and Gravity stand no chance against 12 Years a Slave. And that be true, but
nothing and I repeat personally believe many Hollywood liberals and socially-minded
activists would like to have a Black film and a Black director get an Oscar to send a
strong message of unity and diversity. But I also know from 30 years of experience that
nothing is a lock or a guarantee in Hollywood when it comes to the Academy Awards.
David L. $Money Train$ Watts FuTurXTV HHBMedia.com info@hhbmedia.com www.hhbmedia.com David Velo Stewart
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David L. $Money Train$ Watts FuTurXTV HHBMedia.com info@hhbmedia.com www.hhbmedia.com David Velo Stewart