Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 13:19     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
My AA vote is that this was a terrible, terrible movie all around. Roots and even D'Jango Unchained were MASTERPIECES compared to this tripe. When she was wailing on the steps after her kids were taken away it was some of the worst acting I've ever seen. Not believable at all. I couldn't take it seriously. I was shocked when I saw all the reviews and accolades. People really do get caught up in the subject matter. Smdh. It's too bad because it's a compelling story and I heard the memoir was very well done.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 13:18     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
BTW, in the book Epps and his wife were as nutty as the movie, but in different ways.
Any time a movie is about slavery or the holocaust, it will win. No one wants to criticize any re-enactment of those events.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 13:13     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
Anonymous wrote:I sort of felt the same way -- the performances rose above the script. I think one issue was that they based it on the real memoir and didn't augment it to make it more of a story appropriate for a 21st century movie.



no they didn't it was like they did not read the book...lazy
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 13:10     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
Anonymous wrote:We could easily say the same for the movie Lincoln. The movie was touching and moving and made its point. What more could be expected in Hollywood film and length? Seriously?



+1
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 13:09     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Well as an AA it didn't give me that gut-wrenching "I hate white people" feel like Roots, but it still touched my wife and I. We saw Best Man Holiday the very next day and that was more so a tearjerker to me.


I think this is an interesting point, though. Although I know it's based on the book, I haven't read the book, so it's hard to say. But I kind of feel like the Fassbender character (was it Epps?) was so clearly crazy that it negated the horror of it. What I mean is, it was easy to dismiss him as nuts, rather than see his actions as typical of slaveowners at the time. So you could kind of mentally downplay it.

I thought the Cumberbatch character was far more chilling -- he knew what he was doing and was just as complicit, even though he realized it was wrong. And he recognized Solomon as being educated and was able to compartmentalize/separate him from the other slaves so he didn't have to think about what he was doing to them as a group.

I think Roots was much more compelling and it was harder to dismiss the slaveowners as just crazy people, so you would be more inclined to think "I hate white people" rather than "oh that guy is crazy."


Yes, Epps was clearly crazy, so he was a specific type of villain. But how terrifying is it that a total madman could own and abuse other humans legally, with no recourse whatsoever, just because he was white? His character was scary but the institution of slavery, the fact that it was allowed to exist, is the real evil (obviously).


Roots was like 12 episodes or so, not a 2 hr movie.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 10:24     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
Turned it off after first beating scene. Prefer reading narratives of former slaves, F. Douglass, Hannah Krafts etc.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 09:45     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
I thought it was beautifully made, with very strong performances.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 09:41     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Well as an AA it didn't give me that gut-wrenching "I hate white people" feel like Roots, but it still touched my wife and I. We saw Best Man Holiday the very next day and that was more so a tearjerker to me.


I think this is an interesting point, though. Although I know it's based on the book, I haven't read the book, so it's hard to say. But I kind of feel like the Fassbender character (was it Epps?) was so clearly crazy that it negated the horror of it. What I mean is, it was easy to dismiss him as nuts, rather than see his actions as typical of slaveowners at the time. So you could kind of mentally downplay it.

I thought the Cumberbatch character was far more chilling -- he knew what he was doing and was just as complicit, even though he realized it was wrong. And he recognized Solomon as being educated and was able to compartmentalize/separate him from the other slaves so he didn't have to think about what he was doing to them as a group.

I think Roots was much more compelling and it was harder to dismiss the slaveowners as just crazy people, so you would be more inclined to think "I hate white people" rather than "oh that guy is crazy."


Yes, Epps was clearly crazy, so he was a specific type of villain. But how terrifying is it that a total madman could own and abuse other humans legally, with no recourse whatsoever, just because he was white? His character was scary but the institution of slavery, the fact that it was allowed to exist, is the real evil (obviously).


OP here. Yes, I totally agree -- how terrifying is it that a madman can abuse slaves legally. But Epps did not do it for me. This was just Grand Guignol. I felt like I was watching Mandingo.

I experienced terror -- and still have nightmares -- from reading about how Thomas Thistlewood treated his slaves last year in a book by Trevor Burnard. But this did nothing. It did not seem real.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 09:26     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
Anonymous wrote:i can't stand all tghese movies that are made about issues and just because it was an issue you are supposed to say it was an amazing film etc. it sucks, lincoln sucked,
they make them to creative and all that crap


I'm the PP who disagreed with the OP. For the record I hated Lincoln. I like movies too much to give a movie a pass because of the subject matter.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 09:21     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
i can't stand all tghese movies that are made about issues and just because it was an issue you are supposed to say it was an amazing film etc. it sucks, lincoln sucked,
they make them to creative and all that crap
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 09:18     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Well as an AA it didn't give me that gut-wrenching "I hate white people" feel like Roots, but it still touched my wife and I. We saw Best Man Holiday the very next day and that was more so a tearjerker to me.


I think this is an interesting point, though. Although I know it's based on the book, I haven't read the book, so it's hard to say. But I kind of feel like the Fassbender character (was it Epps?) was so clearly crazy that it negated the horror of it. What I mean is, it was easy to dismiss him as nuts, rather than see his actions as typical of slaveowners at the time. So you could kind of mentally downplay it.

I thought the Cumberbatch character was far more chilling -- he knew what he was doing and was just as complicit, even though he realized it was wrong. And he recognized Solomon as being educated and was able to compartmentalize/separate him from the other slaves so he didn't have to think about what he was doing to them as a group.

I think Roots was much more compelling and it was harder to dismiss the slaveowners as just crazy people, so you would be more inclined to think "I hate white people" rather than "oh that guy is crazy."


Yes, Epps was clearly crazy, so he was a specific type of villain. But how terrifying is it that a total madman could own and abuse other humans legally, with no recourse whatsoever, just because he was white? His character was scary but the institution of slavery, the fact that it was allowed to exist, is the real evil (obviously).
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 09:13     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
Anonymous wrote:Well as an AA it didn't give me that gut-wrenching "I hate white people" feel like Roots, but it still touched my wife and I. We saw Best Man Holiday the very next day and that was more so a tearjerker to me.


I think this is an interesting point, though. Although I know it's based on the book, I haven't read the book, so it's hard to say. But I kind of feel like the Fassbender character (was it Epps?) was so clearly crazy that it negated the horror of it. What I mean is, it was easy to dismiss him as nuts, rather than see his actions as typical of slaveowners at the time. So you could kind of mentally downplay it.

I thought the Cumberbatch character was far more chilling -- he knew what he was doing and was just as complicit, even though he realized it was wrong. And he recognized Solomon as being educated and was able to compartmentalize/separate him from the other slaves so he didn't have to think about what he was doing to them as a group.

I think Roots was much more compelling and it was harder to dismiss the slaveowners as just crazy people, so you would be more inclined to think "I hate white people" rather than "oh that guy is crazy."
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 09:07     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
lol had to edit that for accuracy, of course I saw Roots in like middle school though.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 09:06     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
Well as an AA it didn't give me that gut-wrenching "I hate white people" feel like Roots, but it still touched my wife and I. We saw Best Man Holiday the very next day and that was more so a tearjerker to me.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 09:05     Subject: 12 Years A Slave = Did not think this was impressive
Well as an AA it didn't hit home like Roots, but it still touched my wife and I. We saw Best Man Holiday the very next day and that was more so a tearjerker to me.