If Steve McQueen (the contemporary filmmaker, not the dead movie star) has proved anything in his still early career, it’s that he is profoundly interested in human suffering. In Hunger, the suffering is physical: IRA prisoner Bobby Sands and his fellow inmates are beaten, even as they engage in starvation, a form of self-punishment. In Shame, the suffering is psychological: Michael Fassbender’s sex addict protagonist goes through severe mental anguish in his attempts to cope with everyday life. In 12 Years a Slave, about a free black man, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), who is kidnapped and sold into slavery in antebellum Georgia, McQueen turns his eye to a more well known kind of suffering: the inhumanity of American slavery.

Early trailers suggested, correctly, that 12 Years a Slave would be the film in which McQueen’s unrelenting style–copious long takes of humans in pain–would be tempered by Hollywood expectations. But the combination of the two styles is less contradictory than it might seem. McQueen has plenty of opportunity to show us, in unflinching detail, the severe physical and mental abuse that the protagonist experiences during his 12 years in slavery. However, we also see the moments in which Northup finds meaning in life, from playing violin to singing gospel with his fellow slaves. The movie is told from Northup’s perspective and Ejiofor is at the centre of every scene. Other stars, including Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender, and Benedict Cumberbatch, come and go in minor roles, but the movie belongs to Ejiofor, who nails Northup’s shredded pride and dignity. 

12 Years a Slave played Friday and Saturday, but you can still catch it at 9:00pm on Saturday, September 14 at the Elgin Theatre.

____

Alan Jones writes about film for Toronto Standard. You can follow him on Twitter at @alanjonesxxxv.

For more, follow us on Twitter @TorontoStandard and subscribe to our newsletter.