"12 Years A Slave"

Solomon Northup was black but most definitely a free man, even in a time when slavery was rife throughout America, and many other countries. He was also living a very comortable life, his wife and children by his side in their lovely home.
The family take a brief trip away leaving Solomon on his own for a short while. His skills with the fiddle come to attention of some  Circus owners. They persuade Solomon, who is at a loose end, that he while away his time doing what he loves and also be paid for it.
Unfortunately, the said gentlemen have other ideas, and after wining and dining him one night, the following morning he finds himself in chains and no longer a free man. Sold into slavery his ordeal begins.......


What is at the heart of this film is a truly extraordinary story, and a true one at that. Of man who refuses to be broken by the circumstances that surround him, who remains strong in his knowledge that he is a free man,  at times knowing when he must speak out for the wrong that he sees, even when it dearly costs him, and also knowing when to stay silent. Always firm in the belief that he will again hopefully walk the Earth as a free man.
And central to this story is a quite remarkable performance by lead actor Chiwetel Ejifor. He conveys the bravery, the wisdom and the humanity of Northup in a career defining performance, and in any other year would be the front runner for Best Actor at the forthcoming Academy Awards. I do fear he will be beaten by Matthew McConaughey.
There is very strong support from the rest of the cast too. Evil can come in many forms, and in this film it is no better shown than by the performances of Paul Dano, Michael Fassbender and especially Sarah Paulson, who is positively sickening scary at times. How any lady of society could act the way she does is quite something.
With evil comes goodness, and that is personified in a great performance from Benedict Cumberbatch, one who clearly has Northup's interests at heart, and although can do nothing about his freedom, can certainly do the best to make him comfortable.

Northup shares his plight with Patsey, a plucky young girl, who carries favour with Epps, the sadistic landowner played by Fassbender. But she too suffers tremendously, in one particular scene we see first hand the pain and suffering of a good whipping, and it is not for the faint hearted. In a first time major film performance Nyong'O gives a truly remarkable turn as 'Patsey', one that you will not forget.

Yes it is a film that has to be seen, and has praise heaped upon it from the highest height, may only gripe is that there is no sense of the length of time that Northup was in slavery for, and given the lengthy amount of time involved, it was something that I felt should have been conveyed. Maybe I am being too picky.

Will it win Best Picture at The Academy Awards?  Almost certainly. Should it?  Yes, but for me personally it should be "Gravity"...........8 out of 10