Hosted by Andrew Quinn and Darren Mooney, and this week with special guest Lee Murkey, The 250 is a weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released Saturdays at 6pm GMT.
So this week, Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave.
In 1841 New York, Solomon Northup is a free man. While his wife and family are away, Solomon earns his way as a travelling musician. However, two conmen take advantage of his trust, drugging him and selling him into slavery. Transported to Louisiana, Solomon finds himself stripped of all the rights and comforts afforded a human being. Through twelve years of brutality, horror and violence, Solomon struggles not only to survive, but to live – and to hold on to some vestige of his humanity in the process.
At time of recording, it was ranked 182nd on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.
Show Notes:
- Recorded 18th May 2023.
- Note: Due to the COVID-19 situation, this episode was recorded remotely. We suspect, going forward that a lot of our episodes will be until the crisis resolves.
- 12 Years a Slave at The Internet Movie Database.
- The IMDb Top 250 at time of recording.
- Watch Lee’s reviews and essays as The Fake Critic.
- Follow Lee on Twitter.
- Vinson Cunningham at The New Yorker considers the argument for “afro-pessimism”, July 2020.
- Greg Tate at The Nation considers the controversy and debates around “afro-pessimism”, October 2021.
- Steve McQueen talks to The Financial Times about why he chose to make 12 Years a Slave, October 2014.
- Steve McQueen talks to The Los Angeles Times about the development of 12 Years a Slave, September 2013.
- Steve McQueen discusses with Interview Magazine about how he came to 12 Years a Slave, October 2013.
- Steve McQueen talks to Vulture about the production of 12 Years a Slave, November 2013.
- Lewis Beale at The Los Angeles Times considers the history of depictions of slavery on the screen, November 2013.
- Jonathan Demme talks to The Guardian about making Beloved, February 1999.
- Noah Berlatsky at The Atlantic considers the history and importance of Solomon Northup’s 12 Years a Slave, October 2013.
- Frank James at NPR considers the difficulty that America has acknowledging that the Civil War was fought over slavery, April 2011.
- John Sides at The Washington Post reflects on how many Americans refuse to accept that slavery caused the Civil War, November 2017.
- Richard Brody at The New Yorker reflects on how the horror of slavery is entirely absent from the early history of American cinema, February 2013.
- Allyson Hobbs at The New Yorker considers the legacy and impact of Birth of a Nation, December 2015.
- Steve McQueen talks to The Guardian about how Solomon Northup’s 12 Years a Slave is largely unknown in the United States, September 2013.
- Michael Cieply at The New York Times considers the history of Solomon Northup’s 12 Years a Slave going in and out of publication, September 2013.
- Sue Eakin talks to The New Yorker about effectively unearthing and reviving Solomon Northup’s 12 Years a Slave, February 2014.
- Gordon Parks talks to The New York Times about adapting 12 Years a Slave for American Playhouse, February 1985.
- Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor writes at The Guardian about the illusion of Barack Obama’s “post-racial” America, January 2017.
- Steve McQueen talks to The New York Times about the importance of Barack Obama’s election to getting movies like 12 Years a Slave made, October 2013.
- Sam Frizell at Time reports on the addition of 12 Years a Slave to the American curriculum, February 2014.
- Jenny Brundin at CPR reports on the controversy over teaching slavery in American schools, September 2014.
- Thelma Adams at Yahoo! considers the wave of contemporary movies confronting slavery, October 2013.
- Scott Feinberg at The Hollywood Reporter reflects on the limited awards recognition for many of these movies grappling with the African American experience, January 2014.
- Ashley Clark at The BFI considers the awards success of 12 Years a Slave, with Steve McQueen becoming the first Black filmmaker to win Best Picture, March 2014.
- Dave McNary at Variety considers the importance of John Ridley’s win for Best Adapted Screenplay at the Academy Awards, March 2014.
- John Horn at The Los Angeles Times considers the challenges marketting and distributing 12 Years a Slave, October 2013.
- Jonathan Berr at CBS News considers the box office success of 12 Years a Slave, March 2014.
- Hannah Giorgis at The Atlantic considers the commercialisation of racialised trauma in mainstream pop culture, April 2021.
- Greg Baxton at The Los Angeles Times considers the controversial over depictions of racist violence in modern pop culture, April 2021.
- Tom Grierson at The New Republic considers the brutality of Nate Parker’s The Birth of a Nation, October 2016.
- Armond White reviews 12 Years a Slave for CityArts, October 2013.
- Steve McQueen and Michael Fassbender talks to The Los Angeles Times about their artistic collaborations, November 2011.
- Henry Louis Gates talks to The Guardian about how the history depicted in 12 Years a Slave still reflects America’s present, January 2014.
- Ambrose Heron at FilmDetail notes how the score for Shame sounds a lot like Hans Zimmer, October 2011.
- Double FacePalm juxtaposes Gone With the Wind and 12 Years a Slave, April 2014.
- David Denby reviews 12 Years a Slave for The New Yorker, October 2013.
- Christopher Orr reviews 12 Years a Slave for The Atlantic, October 2013.
- Joe Morgenstern reviews 12 Years a Slave at The Wall Street Journal, October 2013.
- Peter Debruge reviews 12 Years a Slave for Variety, August 2013.
- Ed Rampell and Luis I. Reyes consider depictions of slavery throughout the history of American cinema for Progressive Magazine, December 2012.
- Dan Hassler-Forest writes at The Washington Post about the portrayal of droids as slaves in the Star Wars franchise, May 2018.
- Amanda Bell at MTV considers the context of George Lucas’ infamous “white slavery” remarks, December 2015.
- Ta-Nehisi Coates makes “the case for reparations” in The Atlantic, June 2014.
- Theodore Johnson asks “how to apologise for slavery” in The Atlantic, August 2014.
- Rebecca Liu at Another Gaze considers Steve McQueen’s Widows as a post-Obama era movie, October 2018.
- In an interview with Deadline, Steve McQueen compares the protagonist of Widows to Michelle Obama, December 2018.
- Frank Rich at New York Magazine considers the impact and legacy of “liberal feel bad movies”, November 2011.
- Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor writes at The New Yorker about the enduring power of Scenes of Subjection, October 2017.
- Victoria Segal at The Guardian considers Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, January 2016.
- Wesley Morris writes at Grantland about the experience of watching 12 Years a Slave, October 2013.
- Deadline considers the use of sound and silence in 12 Years a Slave and Gravity, December 2013.
- Joe Walker talks to Deadline about editing 12 Years a Slave, January 2014.
- Roger Ebert reviews Shame for The Chicago Sun Times, November 2011.
- Mario Yuwono at Hollywood Insider considers the history and legacy of Brad Pitt’s Plan B productions, March 2021.
- Chris Darke at Criterion considers Hunger as a film about contemporary issues, February 2010.
- Steve McQueen talks to The Independent about the contemporary resonance of Hunger, May 2008.
- Steve McQueen talks to movies.ie about how Hunger reflects contemporary issues like Guantanamo Bay, September 2008.
- Brooks Barnes and Michael Cieply at The New York Times consider the seemingly narrow Oscar victory for 12 Years a Slave, March 2014.
- Uproxx considers the awards split between Gravity and 12 Years a Slave, March 2014.
- Betsy Sharkey at The Los Angeles Times considers the very difficult path that 12 Years a Slave took to the Best Picture Oscar, February 2014.
- Ben Child at The Guardian reports on Barack Obama’s reaction to watching Lee Daniels’ The Butler, August 2013.
- Dominic Patten at Deadline reports on Barack Obama hosting a screening of Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom at the White House, November 2013.
- Jeff Labrecque at Entertainment Weekly reports on the minor controversy around the screening of awards movies at the Obama White House, November 2013.
- Sharon Churcher and Barbara McMahon at The Daily Mail reports on criticisms of 12 Years a Slave by the descendents of William Ford, January 2014.
- Jada Yuan at Vulture considers the casting of Brad Pitt in 12 Years a Slave, October 2013.
- Ben Child at The Guardian considers the Italian posters for 12 Years a Slave, December 2013.
- Matt Zoller Seitz considers the recurring spirituality of Steve McQueen’s filmography for RogerEbert.com, November 2013.
- Annette Gordon-Reed at Foreign Affairs considers slavery as America’s “original sin”, January/February 2018.
- Sheril Antonio at The Huffington Post considers 12 Years a Slave as a depiction of “double consciousness”, July 2014.
- Sean Bobbitt talks to The British Cinematographer about shooting 12 Years a Slave, June 2015.
- Sean Bobbitt talks to The BBC about various creative choices in how 12 Years a Slave is shot and composed, January 2014.
- Sean Bobbitt talks to The Guardian about his life and career, January 2014.
- Kaniki Lal at The Hollywood Reporter covers Lupita Nyong’o winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for 12 Years a Slave, March 2014.
- Reggie Ugwu at The New York Times looks back at #OscarsSoWhite, February 2020.
- Lupita Nyong’o writes at The New York Times about speaking out against Harvey Weinstein, October 2017.
- Wesley Morris writes at The New York Times about Hollywood’s difficult relationship with Lupita Nyong’o, December 2019.
- Mark Harris writes at Entertainment Weekly about the challenges facing Lupita Nyong’o in Hollywood, April 2014.
- Ian Mohr and Emily Smith at Page Six report on the perceived feud between Steve McQueen and John Ridley over 12 Years a Slave, March 2014.
- Jeff Sneider at The Wrap reports on gossip about tension between Steve McQueen and John Ridley during the production of 12 Years a Slave, March 2014.
- Follow The 250 on Twitter.
- Subscribe to The 250 on iTunes.
- Subscribe to The 250 on Stitcher.
- Listen to The 250 on Soundcloud.
- Listen to The 250 on Spotify.
- Browse listening options at pod.link.
Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: 12 Years a Slave, academy awards, america, Barack Obama, chiwetel ejiofor, donald trump, history, John Ridley, lee murkey, lupita nyong'o, Michael Fassbender, podcast, racism, Slavery |
the m0vie blog 
Leave a comment