12 Years A Slave

12 Years A Slave was an interesting film, particularly in the treatment of gender, race, class (differing classes of whites appear in the film) and "free" status among African Americans (African-Americans in the North were hardly "free" given the rampant racism they encountered, as well as the numerous examples of re-enslavement).

The white mistress is shown in stereotypical ways, yes, but she has tremendous power on the plantation, something backed historically by scholars like Thavolia Glymph. Similarly of interest is the Black woman living like a mistress because of her relationship with the slaveholder, exemplifying how the enslaved are capable of buying into the system that oppresses them. The nuances of color are probably ignored here, but antebellum Louisiana certainly had its fair share of that dynamic that is unfortunately omitted in this film.

What I would've liked to see more of from this otherwise beautifully made and frightening project (with stunning visuals and music) is the multitude of ways in which the enslaved resisted. Sure, we see Solomon fight back against a white man, and acts of emotional resistance (and what might have been an attempt to runaway by Solomon). But one might get the impression from this film that the only way slaves could escape is by finding a benevolent or good-hearted white man to deliver a letter to the North. What about the runaways, who were everywhere in Louisiana during this time?

I suppose you can't fix 'everything' from Northrup's slave narrative into a film, but this is a fine attempt. Moreover, we see how slavery is literally embodied in the experiences of Patsey and Solomon, who bring to life how the enslaved conceived of their Hellish world. I'm still waiting on that Danny Glover film on the Haitian Revolution!