12 Years a Slave: the best depiction about slavery in a movie?

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12 Years a Slave is a brutal and devastating look into the history of slavery in the US. It is indeed a very difficult movie to watch because of the violence (emotional and physical) unleashed on the slaves by their owners.

It'll be an egregious crime if the Academy doesn't nominate the film for best picture, Chiwetel Ejiofor for lead actor, Michael Fassbender for supporting actor, Lupita Nyong'o for supporting actress, Steve McQueen for direction, Sean Bobbitt for cinematography, and John Ridley for adapting the book into the screenplay.

I watched it last week (Friday opening day of its limited release). In theory, its getting a greater theatrical release on November 1st but I'm not sure how big that national distribution will be. The movie also got an impressive 95% approval rating on Rottentomatoes.com if you need any other reason to motivate you to see this necessary film.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2024544/combined

The filmmakers talk to Terry Gross about the film:
http://www.npr.org/2013/10/24/240288057/12-years-a-slave-was-a-film-that-no-one-was-making

So? Have you seen it? Will you be watching the film anytime soon? What do you think is the best depiction of slavery on film? On TV?

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I plan to watch this one, probably on DVD.

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Tsar-
I've all but stopped posting on A2K lately. But I had an impulse to check and see if anyone had started a thread - about this film.

I have as yet not seen it, but I've read a lot about it, and I've long admired Chiwetel Ejiofor as an actor.
I think this film could potentially have an exponentially greater impact on the American psyche (if they are brave enough to go see it) than any artistic depiction of slavery ever before.

Told in narrative from the true life first person perspective of a man who was a free man, tricked into slavery, and endured all the searing, mind and soul destroying horror of slavery for 12 years, before being helped to escape and be free again, but never the same again.

Maybe this movie will help to once and for all silence that stubborn group of people who always seem to pop up with anecdotes about how slavery wasn't really evil (hell, they'll try to sell you that it was just an alternative kind of boss/laborer deal, if you let 'em). Probably not, but one can still hope.

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I hate to be negative here, but I feel it will be more or less 90% preaching to the choir, but I wish I could be wrong.

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@snood,

Good to see ya, Snood. Great surprise this morning.

I haven't seen the movie yet, but I am looking forward to doing so. My guess is that the people most in need of waking up on this issue...probably will pass on it.

The analogies that have today's working conditions to be the same as slavery really bug me. The fact that we as a nation actually allowed slavery to exist for as long as it did says some very sad things about us.

Same ole stuff goin' on here. Hope to see you around a bit more.

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@snood,

Quote:

Maybe this movie will help to once and for all silence that stubborn group of people who always seem to pop up with anecdotes about how slavery wasn't really evil (hell, they'll try to sell you that it was just an alternative kind of boss/laborer deal, if you let 'em). Probably not, but one can still hope.

I couldn't agree more, Snood. There's a lot of that type of delusion going around, isn't there?

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Even though it had a wider opening this weekend.

At least its per theater average has beaten out the all of the other movies on the top 10 box office list:

Code:

TW	Title 	                 Studio	Weekend Gross	% Change	Theater Count / Change	Average	Total Gross

7 	12 Years a Slave 	FoxS 	$4,600,000 	+115.5% 	410 	+287 	$11,220 	$8,760,000

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@tsarstepan,

http://s3-ec.buzzfed.com/static/2013-11/enhanced/webdr02/20/13/enhanced-buzz-8674-1384973552-20.jpg

Why “12 Years A Slave” Star Lupita Nyong’o Should Be Your New Fashion Idol
http://www.buzzfeed.com/hnigatu/why-lupita-nyongo-should-be-your-new-fashion-icon

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@tsarstepan,

Is Matt sick?

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@tsarstepan,

tsarstepan wrote:

Even though it had a wider opening this weekend.

At least its per theater average has beaten out the all of the other movies on the top 10 box office list:

Code:TW Title Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count / Change Average Total Gross 7 12 Years a Slave FoxS $4,600,000 +115.5% 410 +287 $11,220 $8,760,000

the bottom dropped out of the per screen average sales last week, going from $8,300 to $4,500. what is with all of the grim apocalyptic movies out this fall? Dallas Buyers Club, Cap Phillips, Hunger Games, Gravity.... hollywood must think that we are in a masochistic mood.

I will not be seeing this movie, this theme has been done to death, I dont need to see another slavery through the eyes of a slave movie. now if someone does a slavery through the eyes of a slave owner movie I might be game, that would be a fresh idea.

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@hawkeye10,

Do you actually know a single thing about how the box office works? That's only natural considering the very limited movie is on its 6th or 7th week of theatrical release. Rolling Eyes

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@tsarstepan,

tsarstepan wrote:

Do you actually know a single thing about how the box office works? That's only natural considering the very limited movie is on its 6th or 7th week of theatrical release.

I know enough to know that this movie had a very unusual roll out. Do you?

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@hawkeye10,

It's not that unusual for an independent film which has a high critical acceptance..

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@tsarstepan,

tsarstepan wrote:

It's not that unusual for an independent film which has a high critical acceptance..

wrong, this was a planned slow amp up not a limited release pattern where the movie goes into a few theaters to judge how wide a release to give it. I cant think of a single other movie where the contracts written before the movie released called for increasing screen numbers over 4 weeks. Can you?

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@hawkeye10,

You're reading it wrong. It went from a extra limited release to a slightly lesser limited release. That doesn't mean it would have ever hit past the #4 or 5 slot on the weekend box office totals.

Quote:

I cant think of a single other movie where the contracts written before the movie released called for increasing screen numbers over 4 weeks.

Nonsense. And I believe that the closer we get to the Oscar's, there will be another push to get the film recognized by the public. But even that being said, it still won't be blockbuster territory.

Quote:

Box office / business for
12 Years a Slave (2013) More at IMDbPro »
ad feedback
Gross
$24,949,000 (USA) (17 November 2013)
$17,346,000 (USA) (10 November 2013)
$8,952,538 (USA) (3 November 2013)
$3,394,268 (USA) (27 October 2013)

Weekend Gross
$4,700,000 (USA) (17 November 2013) (1,411 Screens)
$6,600,000 (USA) (10 November 2013) (1,144 Screens)
$4,792,214 (USA) (3 November 2013) (410 Screens)
$2,134,325 (USA) (27 October 2013) (123 Screens)

BTW: When was the last time you went to an actual limited theatrical release where a movie starts out in two cities (LA and NY)? I dare say, probably never.

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@tsarstepan,

Quote:

Do you actually know a single thing about how the box office works?

Do you actually know a single thing about the history of the USA?

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@tsarstepan,

Quote:

Quote:

Quote:
I cant think of a single other movie where the contracts written before the movie released called for increasing screen numbers over 4 weeks
.

Nonsense. And I believe that the closer we get to the Oscar's, there will be another push to get the film recognized by the public. But even that being said, it still won't be blockbuster territory.

your comment is completely unrelated to my comment. the limited release program usually looks like the rollout of Silver Linings Playbook

http://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Silver-Linings-Playbook-The#tab=box-office

you will notice that it did not hit wide release till day 64, because it takes weeks to contract screens once the distribution company decides how wide they want to release. Contracts now normally lock in screens for weeks after release, theater companies dont decide on the fly what movies they will show next week, they are mostly locked into deals already. that is why you see for instance Thor still showing on about the same number of screens it opened at almost three weeks in even though the daily sales per screen average is miserable...theater owners would be cutting it back if they could, but they have contracts that dont allow it.

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=daily&id=thor2.htm

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@hawkeye10,

There is no such thing as a limited release program. I'm glad you can make things up as you go along.

Each movie production has their own deal with their respective distribution companies.
12 Years a Slave: Fox Searchlight Pictures (2013) (USA) (theatrical)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2024544/companycredits

Silver Linings Playbook: Weinstein Company, The (2012) (USA) (theatrical)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1045658/companycredits
Compare the number of distribution companies each film has worldwide. Your comparison between the two movies and their respective theatrical releases is merely anecdotal at best AKA utterly useless.

Why are you mentioning Thor in the first place? The marketing budget for that movie was $170 million (the rule of thumb being that the marketing budget is about the same amount as the movie production budget).

Hmmm?? David O. Russell? Who's movies are known box office commodities though not blockbusters.

Steve McQueen? He had two other feature films released in the US. Combined US box office total: less then $5 million. Of course he's not going to get any support from the studio system.

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@tsarstepan,

you dont deal with any of my points. I will take that as an admission that you cant.

Quote:

Each movie production has their own deal with their respective distribution companies.

wow, you ARE desperate for a diversion. I was talking about the deals between the distribution companies and the theater owners.

Quote:

Compare the number of distribution companies each film has worldwide. Your comparison between the two movies and their respective theatrical releases is merely anecdotal at best AKA utterly useless

it is however 100% more evidence produced for my assertions than you have produced for yours.

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I saw it two weeks ago. The word that first comes to mind to describe the experience is 'stunning'. I think every American should see it.

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12 Years a Slave: the best depiction about slavery in a movie?

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