Steve McQueen’s film 12 Years a Slave (2013) is a tragic portrayal of slavery in nineteenth-century America, based on the true story of Soloman Northup. The film is remarkable for its compelling story and deep emotional depth. The film follows Soloman Northup, a free black man who is misled, abducted, sold into slavery, and separated from his wife and children. Throughout the film, we see Soloman being sold from master to master and tortured in the process. The film concludes with a letter sent up North proving that Soloman is indeed a free man and not a slave, and he is eventually reunited with his friends and family after 12 years.
The cinematography heightens the emotional weight of the story by using natural lighting and structured framing to create a visceral feeling of time and place, making it feel more authentic. McQueen used long uninterrupted takes to show the agony of slavery, resulting in a difficult tension. For example, Soloman is left hanging from a tree, barely able to stand on his toes and the sequence lingers uncomfortably, forcing the audience to witness crucial instances in history that many people feel afraid of. The film frequently uses nature as a silent witness, displaying views of swaying trees or tranquil landscapes and contrasting them with acts of violence, as the hanging scene, underscoring the mismatch between the beauty of the natural world and the ugliness of human cruelty.
This film depicts the truly awful circumstances that slaves endured at the time, even if it contrasts with the stereotypical slave. Back then, illiterate people were more heavily targeted, and enslaving someone educated like Soloman Northup posed a greater risk. This film is important because it shows how long slavery lasted after the war and shows the discrimination first hand.
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