US History: September 2014

Learning History Through Film

While watching these two films, 12 Years a Slave and Glory, I learned about the effects of slavery in US History. I know that sounds strange, saying that I actually learned from a movie, but it is true. Also, during my research, I learned some interesting things, not only about slavery, but also about the movies themselves.

While researching, I was able to understand the goals and intentions of the filmmakers by directing these two movies, and now, looking back, I can see how they portrayed that in the film. Edward Zwick, director of Glory, explained his main motive as, “I was a young, white, liberal director presuming to make a movie about the African- American experience”. Also, he explains that he did not direct this movie to “break a political barrier”; he simply felt that this story needed to be told. In my opinion, this movie very well portrays the African-American experience. Zwick focused not only on the black, and not only on the whites, but the regiment itself. By doing this, he was able to accurately depict the relationship between whites and blacks and, in this case, how they came together with a common purpose.

In my research on 12 Years a Slave, I found that it was not the director, Steve McQueen, but his wife who suggested he think of personal accounts of slavery. McQueen had always wanted to make a movie about slavery, and he says, “Once I got hold of 12 Years a Slave, I never let go”. By showing this story about Soloman Northup, who was tricked, captured, and beaten, but still managed to write this story, McQueen shows the world the true inhumanity and the horror of slavery. The team of directors and composers felt this was “unresolved history” and that is needed to be addressed.

As in all movies, there are some historical inaccuracies. In 12 Years a Slave, the inaccuracies are not very major. For example, Northup actually had 3 children instead of 2 as depicted in the film. There were also some inaccuracies in details of disputes between other characters. One of these includes Patsy never actually being injured by Mary Epps in her jealous rage. These inaccuracies, however, do not have much effect on the content of this film or the point the director was trying to get across. One inaccuracy that does affect this, though, is the murder of one of the slaves on the ship. This man actually died of smallpox, but in the film, it was shown that he was knifed to death trying to save a woman from being raped. This scene was most likely exaggerated in order to help prove the point. Having this slave be stabbed and beaten to death proves the point of the inhumanity and brutality towards the slaves. In Glory, however, there were a couple more inaccuracies that were somewhat major. For example, in the film, it was portrayed that the 54^th Regiment was made up mostly on black runaway slaves. When, in reality, the regiment was made up mostly of freed men who were recruited to fight. Although some of these inaccuracies are pretty major, most of the details of these films were accurate and educational.

Both of these films were created for the purpose of telling the world these incredible stories. Even though there were some specifics that were changed, that does not mean that I did not learn from the truths of the films. For example, it was extremely impactful to me that these men tricked and deceived Northup and then sold him into slavery. Before watching 12 Years a Slave, I mostly thought of slaves as just blacks who were either born into slavery or captured and brought here from Africa. Also, I had not ever learned much about the 54^th regiment and this special relationship between the black and white soldiers and their commanders. Glory helped me understand that, when necessary, the blacks and the white could come together for a common purpose.

Although movies can have exaggerated parts or some extra elements for entertainment purposes, they can also be very educational if watched the right way. During these two films, I learned a lot about slavery and about history in general. Also, by researching details about these movies, I was able to understand the director’s purpose for these films and understand what they wanted to portray to the world.

Sources, Film Research – Glory & 12 Years a Slave

Victoria Fennell

12 Years a Slave:

Indiewire, Telluride Film Festival Review: Steve McQueen's '12 Years a Slave,' Anchored By Brilliant Chiwetel Ejiofor, Is a Slavery Movie For the Ages

http://www.indiewire.com/article/telluride-film-festival-review-steve-mcqueens-12-years-a-slave-anchored-by-brilliant-chiwetel-ejiofor-is-a-slavery-movie-for-the-ages

TIME, 12 Years a Slave and Mandela: Two Tales of Racism Survived

http://entertainment.time.com/2013/09/09/12-years-a-slave-and-mandela-two-tales-of-racism-survived/

The New Yorker, Fighting to Survive

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/10/21/fighting-to-survive-2

IMDb, 12 Years a Slave

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2024544/?ref_=ttcrv_crv_tt

Box Office Mojo, 12 Years a Slave

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=twelveyearsaslave.htm

Wikipedia, 12 Years a Slave (film)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/12_Years_a_Slave_(film)#Box_office

Amazon, Twelve Years a Slave (Illustrated)\