12 Years a Slave

12 Years a Slave

This is my review of the movie, 12 Years a Slave, after watching it this week.

Solomon Northup, who is played by Chiwetel Ejiofor, is an average family man living in New York, with his wife and two children.  

The troubles and slavery of the 'South States' of 1840s America seem very far away to him, until he is kidnapped one night and sold into slavery.  He is tortured repeatedly until he realizes that he needs to accept his current situation and new identity given to him as 'Platt Hamilton' a slave.  

The movie, 12 Years A Slave, is a hellish view into the nightmare world of slavery in America, through the eyes of Solomon Northup / Platt Hamilton.  

Every day brings with it the possibility of torture and/or death at the hands of all or one of his masters.  Being born into freedom in New York, a northern state, a 'Free State', he is at first unaccustomed to the rules of the brutal oppression in the 'South'. 

Gradually, he gives his saneness and humility away, but never truly and completely loses hope, of one day that he will recover his 'Freedom'.  

This was a heart-touching, difficult movie to watch, the difficulty is not that it is a bad movie, the brutality of the 'Truth' of it is, difficult yo watch. 

This movie will win the 'Best Picture' in the up-coming Oscars, believe me. 

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