Will "12 Years A Slave" Become the Next "Brokeback Mountain"?

James Canellos ’17/ Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer
Little hot dogs are cooked, final predictions are made, and I’m jumping around my home in excitement. This is my version of pre-gaming every year before the Academy Awards airs on television. Cheers explode out of my mouth when somebody I wanted wins the Academy, and curse words slip out when my picks don’t get recognized. The Oscars are like to me what the Super Bowl is to any avid football fan, except imagine your favorite team is playing every year for the win.
Although I love the Academy Awards, there have been some snubs throughout their history. The politics of the game takes away the whole point of the ceremony, which is to simply vote for the best and most deserving film. One case of this was back in 2006 when Paul Haggis’ Crash beat out favorite to win, Brokeback Mountain. This wouldn’t be such a huge deal, had Academy Award members not said a recurring complaint about Brokeback: ‘Uncomfortable’.

That word has reemerged over this awards season as well, for the film 12 Years a Slave. It depicts the life of a freeman named Solomon Northup, who is tricked into slavery and taken away from his family for 12 years. Some Oscar voters have openly said that they’re waiting to see 12 Years a Slave after the DVD is sent to them so they can fast forward through the more violent parts. Yes, the scenes of violence in 12 Years A Slave is hard to watch, but that’s the whole point. There was no hiding from it in the 1840’s, and it would be disrespectful to ignore it in a modern day film. When heinous acts are performed in real life, and then depicted on the big screen, the only way to do justice to the victims of such madness is to make the audience understand their pain. It’s a disturbing subject that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Being called ‘uncomfortable’ should have been a compliment for director Steve McQueen because it means he got the audience to feel certain emotions for such a delicate topic in our history.
McQueen was only trying to show an honest portrayal of America’s most well known atrocity. To complain about the violence in it is like asking for ice cream, and saying it’s too cold. There’s plenty of violence in action films where cities are blown up, yet attention is turned away from the film that actually uses the violence as a necessary tool to grab hold of your emotions. It’s exactly how director Ang Lee used the kissing scenes between Heath Ledger and  Jake Gyllenhaal, there are scenes of random hook ups all the time in movies, but people decide to feel uncomfortable when two men, who truly love each other, embrace their passion. Without their love scenes, the film wouldn’t have the same emotional impact; to not include scenes of passion would make it feel like it’s a subject that needs to be hidden away. Their characters Ennis and Jack wouldn’t be deemed one of the best couples in film history had they shied away from these essential scenes.

Although 12 Years a Slave and Brokeback Mountain take place in the 1800’s and the 1960s-80s, respectively, the themes are still unfortunately relevant today. Homosexuality is still frowned upon to this day, even illegal in some countries, and people who are genuinely in love with the same sex still have issues with acceptance. While slavery is no longer an issue in America, the justice system is still incredibly flawed and biased to the point where people feel like they’re slaves to it. To this day men and women are forced into labor without pay or basic human rights. All around of the world there is human trafficking going on. Men and women are threatened into shady businesses and will never get to see there families. These modern day prisoners are no different then Solomon, whose greatest anguish in 12 Years a Slave was that he missed out on the opportunity to be a husband and a father. He was someone who was unfairly imprisoned, and stripped of his basic human rights. McQueen’s unflinching look is all the more grueling from his choice to not cut in certain moments, to let the scenes of cruelty continue to roll. Instead of giving us time to tap out he forces us to witness the relentlessness of it.
Of course this comparison has its flaws. In 2005 Brokeback seemed to be the only front-runner, while this awards race has three front-runners: American Hustle, Gravity and 12 Years a Slave. What still remains relevant is the complaint about these films. Many noted that David O. Russell’s American Hustle has bad pacing and has been over hyped. Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity lacks a strong dialogue and accuracy. However, the only quarrel about 12 Years a Slave has been that it was tough to watch. Coincidentally, the films that are toughest to watch usually have the most to say, which is why 12 Years a Slave should win Best Picture. McQueen takes a subject that’s 150 years old and makes it feel like a present day concern.
While American Hustle and Gravity are both great films, and Cuarón definitely deserves Best Director, I hope the Academy will vote for the film that they really feel is the best and not exclude a film like 12 Years a Slave just because of its subject matter.