Steve McQueen's Twelve Years A Slave

[Thundercrack85]

It's an uncomfortable topic. While people are quick to say they had nothing to do with it, if your great grandfather was known for basically torturing another person, I'd probably wanna downplay it myself.

But even that doesn't get to the root of the problem. It's also not like slavery ended, we all held hands, and sang kum ba yah.

The unfortunate truth is that slavery totally destroys the popular idea of America being a historical, great, force for good.

In fact, it basically sullies the entire American Revolution, and makes most of the founding fathers look like hypocrites, and liars.

It's kind of hard to tell your kids that your country's founding principals are a disingenuous lie. The man on the dollar bill is a ruthless racist, slave master, the White House was built by slaves, etc.

Granted, Southerners revise history the most, but it's a terrible shared legacy for the entire country.

 

[Schlosser85]

I just went to find showtimes for this at my local theater and apparently it's not even playing??

 

[Zeus]

I just went to find showtimes for this at my local theater and apparently it's not even playing??

Its still in limited release...Playing only in a few theaters in NY and LA and maybe few other places.

 

[Schlosser85]

I thought it did limited release in October and was opening wide November 1.

 

[terry78]

Yeah, I'm in Indiana but had to go to a theatre in Chicago to even find it.

 

[L.A.]

Just finish it watching with my wife and she was in tears watching it. Definitely one of the more important movies I've seen

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

Because we don't talk about it the way we need to. Most people think slaves got treated like the outside dog. It's glossed over in school and their are very few movies and TV shows about it.

Not to get too political, but there are certain aspects of the slow rise of Libertarianism in this country that makes me very worried about the direction people who espouse that philosophy would take the country. No, I am not suggesting the return of the slave trade or Jim Crow. But think on the discussions you may have had with a Libertarian type when the topic of slavery comes up. What's their usual train of thought on that? "Well, the Civil War was really unnecessary because as a practice in the U.S., slavery was on the way out because of market forces. If the North had never pushed the South those slaves would have been freed by the coming of industrialization in all fields in a few years time." That or a variation on it is what you often hear. That these people seem to ignore the reality of slavery, what it meant not only for the body, minds and spirits of the enslaved, but for their children and perhaps their children's children always shocks the hell out of me. The same people that cry "slavery and serfdom" when discussing the differences in marginal tax rates fro 34% to 39%, when confronted with actual slavery hand wave it away with a blithe "market forces would have taken care of that". The mass of human beings who lived what Solomon did in this film from cradle to grave could not wait for market forces to correct a grave sin from the time of our nation's inception. And as Brad Pitt's character says, the act of slavery harms the hand that holds the whip almost as much as those on the receiving end of the lash. I question the intellectual and moral fitness of those that can't find it in themselves to see all of this.

 

[Lencho01]

But even that doesn't get to the root of the problem. It's also not like slavery ended, we all held hands, and sang kum ba yah.

The unfortunate truth is that slavery totally destroys the popular idea of America being a historical, great, force for good.

In fact, it basically sullies the entire American Revolution, and makes most of the founding fathers look like hypocrites, and liars.

It's kind of hard to tell your kids that your country's founding principals are a disingenuous lie. The man on the dollar bill is a ruthless racist, slave master, the White House was built by slaves, etc.

Granted, Southerners revise history the most, but it's a terrible shared legacy for the entire country.

I was lucky to have history teachers in middle and high school who didn't try to give us some clean and positive version of the story. Especially my freshman teacher, who would always stress Haves (rich white guys in power) vs. Have Nots (pretty much everyone else)

 

[chamber-music]

I've met a lot of Southerners who... I wouldn't say deny slavery (like holocaust denial), but they really downplay the horrors of slavery.

Actually, funny (or sad, really) anecdote: one Southerner I spoke to not too long ago, said he never realized how bad slavery was - until he saw Django Unchained.

I watched a episode of Finding your roots on PBS in which a black guy found the his ancestor's slave owners and wanted to do a DNA test with their living descendants to see if he was related due to the slave plantation owning family being notorious for raping their slave women to produce more slaves which was seen as cheaper than buying a new slave.

All the descendants refused.

But even that doesn't get to the root of the problem. It's also not like slavery ended, we all held hands, and sang kum ba yah.

The unfortunate truth is that slavery totally destroys the popular idea of America being a historical, great, force for good.

In fact, it basically sullies the entire American Revolution, and makes most of the founding fathers look like hypocrites, and liars.

It's kind of hard to tell your kids that your country's founding principals are a disingenuous lie. The man on the dollar bill is a ruthless racist, slave master, the White House was built by slaves, etc.

Granted, Southerners revise history the most, but it's a terrible shared legacy for the entire country.

We had Prime Minister Tony Blair said he expressed deep sorrow for Britain's role in the slave trade back in 2006 which is about the closest to an apology your ever going to get from the British state regarding its role in the slave trade. Most British people who aren't right wing nationalists ass***** or racists generally accept that the Colonial British Empire was built off of exploitation of millions of people.

I find people who view historical figures as saints strange. Everyone has their flaws, ugly side and make mistakes it would unrealistic to think otherwise.

 

[dark_b]

due to the slave plantation owning family being notorious for raping their slave women to produce more slaves which was seen as cheaper than buying a new slave.

.

 

[Dr. Evil]

I watched a episode of Finding your roots on PBS in which a black guy found the his ancestor's slave owners and wanted to do a DNA test with their living descendants to see if he was related due to the slave plantation owning family being notorious for raping their slave women to produce more slaves which was seen as cheaper than buying a new slave.

All the descendants refused.

We had Prime Minister Tony Blair said he expressed deep sorrow for Britain's role in the slave trade back in 2006 which is about the closest to an apology your ever going to get from the British state regarding its role in the slave trade. Most British people who aren't right wing nationalists ass***** or racists generally accept that the Colonial British Empire was built off of exploitation of millions of people.

I find people who view historical figures as saints strange. Everyone has their flaws, ugly side and make mistakes it would unrealistic to think otherwise.

The French, Spanish, Germans, Belgians, Dutch and Portuguese also played significant roles in the Slave trade as well. Sub Saharan African history is filled with this. Hell, even after Independence, South Africa was virtually a racist country well into the late 1980's.

I wonder if Britain has an extreme Pro-White, Pro Racist Group in their country like the US does with the Tea Party.

 

[chamber-music]

I wonder if Britain has an extreme Pro-White, Pro Racist Group in their country like the US does with the Tea Party.

The BNP (British National Party) is a white power racist 'party' in the UK.

UKIP (United Kingdom Independence Party) is probably the closest thing to the Tea Party in the U.S UKIP are basically anti-European and generally xenophobic.

 

[roach]

if you look into the treatment of slaves it was pretty horrific..I just happened to be writing a slavery movie and in my research i discovered that kids were put to work also. Most of the time their job was to pick the bugs off the bales of cotton or tobacco. Any bugs found the child was made to eat them.

 

[terry78]

I just discovered John Ridley wrote the screenplay for this. The guy that writes for Boondocks, and also wrote Undercover Brother and Red Tails.

 

[roach]

I just discovered John Ridley wrote the screenplay for this. The guy that writes for Boondocks, and also wrote Undercover Brother and Red Tails.

that is correct

He also writes comics...The Authority: Human on the Inside (2004)
Razor's Edge: Warblade (2004)
The American Way (2006)

and wrote episodes of Justice League

 

[Kane52630]

I just watched it, incredibly well made and I can see Chiwetel Ejiofor and Michael Fassbender getting nominated.

 

[Dr. Evil]

I just discovered John Ridley wrote the screenplay for this. The guy that writes for Boondocks, and also wrote Undercover Brother and Red Tails.

He just got hired to re-write the script for the Spartacus remake.

 

[Octoberist]

I just discovered John Ridley wrote the screenplay for this. The guy that writes for Boondocks, and also wrote Undercover Brother and Red Tails.

He deserves an Oscar for this.

 

[dark_b]

i dont want to open a new thread. but its interesting how Mcqueen is always angry when they ask him stupid questions. and they are stupid. he is not playing the hollywood game by giving them long smart answers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbHVhXlbYWA

 

[chamber-music]

McQueen isn't malicious or intentionally rude but very blunt and straight to the point.

I actually find it refreshing that he hasn't got time for BS.

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

I actually think he's being pretty pretentious and playing up an L'Enfant terrible act, which does serve many an artist well in the circles they inhabit regularly. For a film like this, limited release, serious drama about very hard to look at historical material, it does not hurt to have a director willing to make a name for himself as a difficult interview. Just saying.

 

[terry78]

I get where dude is coming from, but when you're in the entertainment biz you already know they're gonna ask insipid ****, and people act surprised about it. Like half of people act standoffish about it, the other half just go with it.

 

[MessiahDecoy123]

Of course some interviewers will continue to ask dumb questions to troll him but others will actually try to ask better questions to avoid his wrath.

 

[the last son]

Even though I didn't like Shame, I did enjoy the direction of McQueen and his no holds barred style of directing. I'm looking forward to seeing this. I might watch Hunger one of these days.

 

[Dr. Evil]

McQueen is malicious or intentionally rude but very blunt and straight to the point.

I actually find it refreshing that he hasn't got time for BS.

McQueen seemed to like being interviewed by Tavis Smiley. Then again, Tavis Smiley is a very articulate and smart interviewer.

As Chris Rock calls him "The Black Charlie Rose."