I’m not much of a movie snob.
Becky and I watch movies for entertainment. We don’t care much about critics or Academy Awards. At times, we choose a romantic comedy so that we can laugh and snuggle in bed together. Other times we might be in the mood to watch some movie with superheroes or even ones with angels and demons. Such movies with a lot of details are quite fun to watch as it gives us more information on a particular character. My wife likes to read blogs and various other articles on all of these things on the internet, and it’s fascinating to learn how some of the characters in the movie came to be. You could for instance be stuck on some name in these movies and if you feel like finding more about it, you can check out sites like hellhorror.com.
Last weekend we made an exception-we watched a movie we didn’t really want to see, and I hope you’ll watch it as well. We didn’t see it because it won the 2013 Oscar for Best Picture. We decided we needed to see this remarkable story to remind ourselves why we need to keep working to confront the evil of modern-day slavery and human trafficking.
Most of the time, we watch movies on Netflix or Prime, but there have been instances where the movies are available on Netflix, but we are unable to watch them due to location restrictions. In such cases, we usually use VPN services to watch those movies. The reason is it generates a virtual ID that is displayed in a different location based on your preferences. When we first wanted to watch a show that wasn’t available in our area, we went to Google and looked up how to use netflix with vpn. Then we finally figured it out. Isn’t that cool?
Talking about the movie, 12 Years A Slave is a tough story made even tougher when you realize that it’s not just part of the history books. Solomon Northup’s story is happening today, on a much larger scale than ever before. And we simply cannot turn away and pretend it’s not there.
I hope you’ll see this movie, not because it’s entertaining but because it’s horrible and raw and real and because it reminds us of our responsibility to our brothers and sisters around the corner and around the world.
See this film and don’t think of 18th century America. Think of the nearly thirty million humans living in slavery right now and know that you, me, we cannot allow this to continue.
12 Years A Slave is a disturbing story. It should be.
Please leave a comment here.
My family was incredibly moved by this film. It is uncomfortable for the audience, as it should be! People should FEEL something deeply so they can be moved to action.This film does this with beauty, grace, and brutality. Northrop is so effective with this story of human strength and perseverance. I agree, everyone should see this film. It is shocking what the human race is capable of, both good and bad. My sixteen year old son was very effected by this film and it encouraged a deep and emotional family discussion. I am thankful for the opportunity to learn and be inspired by art and truth like Twelve Years a Slave.