How much he have missed his family for 12 years... And he never knew he would ever see them again but only hopes... Walking through that door again must be like a dream he always dreamt of... unimaginable happiness
And at the same time, an unimaginable grief, at the thought of what he lost, and how they suffered. That pleasure of reuniting is so mixed with pain. It’s portrayed beautifully here - not as joy, but as a much more profound sense of relief and of loss.
Same. I wa sonly 14 to 15 when i saw this but I understood how good of a film this was then. My brothers were watching so I was holding my tears but this is one of the few movies that genuinely bought tears from me.
@@LucDutra92 Yeah, he had lived the last 12 years believing he deserved his misery and apologizing in order to not be tormented, eventually you believe it
This scene makes cry so much...this brave man went through 12 years of hell but he still asks his family for their forgiveness cause he feels like he abandoned them...POWERFUL!
To understand why he is apologizing, you need to understand what family means. Although being kidnapped and still away from family for such a long time, he could not forget his identity as a father and could not forgive himself for the RESPONSIBILITY that he had to carry out for his family.
Also because he's been conditioned to apologize for things that aren't worth apologizing for and for things he didn't do. 12 years of slavery and you will apologize for anything just because it's the only language you know.
I never thought much of it before, but the way the new husband hands the baby to her first, so she can be the one to pass the baby to her father...that was awesome
The audio from this scene is unbelievable. It’s so intimate, you can almost hear people’s heartbeat. This couldn’t have been more perfectly filmed and acted.
Movies like this fill me with such sorrow and rage. Feelings i despise quite honestly because they go against my nature. I will forgive for my own peace, but I'll never forget.
@@huberticusrexno, they didn’t have democracy. It’s not democracy if there an entire race that is subjugated. The us has only had real democracy since maybe 1965.
I got to pre-screen this movie several months before it came out. None of us had any idea what we were going to see until we sat down in the theater, and after the lights came up, apart from a few people crying, it was dead silent.
Good because it made such a powerful impact on the audience. It was not a fun film to watch-in fact, it was difficult and painful to endure at times-but we all left the theater talking about how people could inflict such cruelty on each other. Which tells me the vast majority of the audience values kindness, empathy, and equity.
@@amadeus5889 agreed, great films aren't necessarily fun but evoke real emotion from us. for such a difficult viewing though and not expecting it, it's nice that your takeaway is that the audience probably has such values. thanks for sharing!
Chiwetel Ejiofor should have gotten an oscar for this performance. He was the perfect actor to cast for this role. One of the best film performances in history.
It's disgusting what happened back then. We're all the same people. Brother and sister created in our father's image. I can never understand this kind of thinking. Treating people like animals.
This scene is a direct contrast to the ending of The Killing Fields (1984) when Sydney Schanberg locates Dith Pran. He almost says the same thing 'Nothing to forgive. Sydney'. If you didn't cry in either this film or The Killing Fields, you ain't living. Both beautiful films regardless. Dr. Haing Ngnor (sp) and Chweitel are awesome actors.
That broke me. I remember how much i hated being black as a child. I wanted to bleach my skin and relax my hair so i wouldnt stand out so much. My history teacher in high school decided to go off script and spent a week teaching us about the real lives of black people before, during, and after the civil war and it changed my world. Stories like this, heart breaking as they are, make me proud to be who i am. I claim my heritage with my chest out now because i know theres an endless stream of ancestors who fought tooth and nail, faced pain beyond my imagination and hardaches i only have to read about so that i could walk freely and proudly in my own skin. And thats a sacrifice i will never forget.
Black people have some of the best genes... and it's your inner being that matters far above all physical details. This scene always makes my cry... There's too much political narrativizing... Even when I read fiction like Uncle Tom's death and Eliza and George Harris' escape to Canada it had me in tears every time. Insane that we can ever accept abusing our fellow inner experiencers.
Man, I cry every time I see this shyt! Mr. Parker was EVERYTHING in this movie and embodied EVERYTHING America really is supposed to be! Along with Brad Pitts character
I've read the real Solomon's memoir and it's absolutely insane that this is a real story, I cannot imagine what he and his family went through. I'm sure they assumed they'd never see him again, they spent 12 years not knowing if he was alive or dead. And what he had to endure. And he was one of the "lucky ones," because his torment ended after 12 years. How many millions never went free? I watched this movie after watching Lincoln and it made Lincoln even more memorable; it really makes it hit home how important it was for Lincoln to win the war.
To be gone from his family, UNWILLINGLY, for 12 years, and the first thing he does is apologize and ask for forgiveness, shows how much more he cared about his family than all the pain he went through in that time
"The date, location and circumstances of Solomon's death are unknown." While this is still true, there are clues that paint a picture of what may have happened... "According to John R. Smith, in letters written in the 1930s, his father Rev. John L. Smith, a Methodist minister in Vermont, had worked with Northup and former slave Tabbs Gross in the early 1860s, during the Civil War, aiding fugitive slaves on the Underground Railroad. Northup was said to have visited Rev. Smith after Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, which was made in January 1863...It is believed by historians that he died in 1863 or 1864." Therefore, an incredibly likely bookend to Solomon's story is that he was killed in a heroic effort to liberate black slaves. This not only makes logical sense but would (if true) be a morbidly beautiful end to the life of a man who endured such cruel horrors, a martyr for the holy cause of freedom.
It isn't "incredibly likely" he was killed that way. If he had died in such a matter, that likely would have been recorded. Instead, he probably died from some illness like many people did at that time, but we really don't know.
@@Wasserkaktus I do not claim that this theory is conclusively true or that other theories aren't equally, if not more, plausible (like you said, "we really don't know"). However, to dismiss that he was killed in the act of emancipation, based on the idea that "it would have been recorded", doesn't stand up to how we understand history. There are MANY names from the Underground Railroad that we do not know, and likely never will, that died in their efforts. However, we can still piece together what they did from surrounding bits of evidence. In the case of Northup, we know that he was extensively involved in the Underground Railroad, that he disappeared at the height of the Civil War, and that no record appears of him being recaptured. True, he may have died of disease, but wouldn't it be more likely that THIS would have been recorded? Such deaths aren't usually tailored to obscurity. Common diseases of the day (typhoid, dysentery, smallpox, etc.) were slow-acting, spread through populated environments, and would leave an identifiable body. If he was killed, then it's very likely that Northup's body (like those of other such liberators) would have been seized by his killers and buried in an unmarked grave. Again, this is only speculation (until more evidence comes to light) but it is still INCREDIBLY likely as it was not a unique fate for those active in the Underground Railroad.
So I haven’t had the pleasure of being able to watch the full movie before so I would like someone to possibly explain is the lady that walked up to him and hugged him is his daughter or his wife?
You don't watch it, you live it as if you are right there, the acting and story and everything so quiet yet so powerful and intense. This is the best movie I have watched in my 33 years of life.
The only victory in this movie, for me, personally, is this scene. After 12 years of suffering, he finally got to return to the people who cared about him the most.
Thank god and the angel and nice devil for getting him away from the horrible place . And great this disgusting slavery is cancelled . Thank you up to heaven Mr Lincoln 😊
Mordo deserves to be free and now is back to be with his family again from the evil south of slavery. Now Mordo must take revenge on Dr. Stephen Strange for selling him to Magneto and being beaten up by the Riddler.
@@jacobgarrity651 you’re making cringe comments about roller coaster movies over a scene that most likely happened in real life, real people went through this shit and all you can make is stupid ass superhero movies references cause your favorite celebrities are in them and your pallet for movies is mid, grow tf up and watch some real films and have some respect for once in your life
How much he have missed his family for 12 years... And he never knew he would ever see them again but only hopes... Walking through that door again must be like a dream he always dreamt of... unimaginable happiness
And at the same time, an unimaginable grief, at the thought of what he lost, and how they suffered. That pleasure of reuniting is so mixed with pain. It’s portrayed beautifully here - not as joy, but as a much more profound sense of relief and of loss.
@@LloydWaldo Yes he'll mentally suffer for the rest he had to leave behind and forever be traumatised 😭
Yes. Well said, it was a beautiful but sad reunion. He is overjoyed to see them, but sad that he missed 12 years of their lives.
15 onniit
Devastating scene! Some of the deepest, genius acting on the planet. Chiwetel is special indeed. One of our finest.
This is literally the only film to ever make me actually cry. Not just tear up, but CRY.
Same. I wa sonly 14 to 15 when i saw this but I understood how good of a film this was then. My brothers were watching so I was holding my tears but this is one of the few movies that genuinely bought tears from me.
Four for me: Schindler's List, The Passion of the Christ, Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father, and 12 Years a Slave
Then watch Hachi: A Dog's Tale (2009) next. Make them at least 2 movies that would make you cry :D.
if i were him, after 12 years of not seeing my family i wouldve broke down crying unable to form words while im in unimaginable happiness
In this scene you can see guilt in Solomon's eyes. He asks for their forgiveness as if it was all his fault
@@LucDutra92 Yeah, he had lived the last 12 years believing he deserved his misery and apologizing in order to not be tormented, eventually you believe it
Thank goodness you're not him.... this shows empathy
This scene makes cry so much...this brave man went through 12 years of hell but he still asks his family for their forgiveness cause he feels like he abandoned them...POWERFUL!
I first readed the book than .. watched the movie and now I think everyone should respect and cherish the blessing of liberty and Freedom 🥺🥺🥺🥺
To understand why he is apologizing, you need to understand what family means. Although being kidnapped and still away from family for such a long time, he could not forget his identity as a father and could not forgive himself for the RESPONSIBILITY that he had to carry out for his family.
Also because he's been conditioned to apologize for things that aren't worth apologizing for and for things he didn't do. 12 years of slavery and you will apologize for anything just because it's the only language you know.
Well said.
I never thought much of it before, but the way the new husband hands the baby to her first, so she can be the one to pass the baby to her father...that was awesome
Thanks for pointing that out very intuitive!!! 🔥🔥🔥
The audio from this scene is unbelievable. It’s so intimate, you can almost hear people’s heartbeat. This couldn’t have been more perfectly filmed and acted.
Movies like this fill me with such sorrow and rage. Feelings i despise quite honestly because they go against my nature. I will forgive for my own peace, but I'll never forget.
Started bawling when the first words out of his mouth was an apology
It is easier to break a man’s bones, then to break his spirit.
*than
Slavery is an EVIL that should not befall none- Solomon Northup.
Everyone who gets too comfortable in our democracy should watch this movie. Life can be so much harder.
You missed the point of the movie
Woosh...smh
@dtb ailee No he didn't.😊
@@huberticusrexno, they didn’t have democracy. It’s not democracy if there an entire race that is subjugated. The us has only had real democracy since maybe 1965.
@huberticusrex the United States has never been a democracy. Ya'll should have studied more lol
So glad he got to live again without torment 😢
I got to pre-screen this movie several months before it came out. None of us had any idea what we were going to see until we sat down in the theater, and after the lights came up, apart from a few people crying, it was dead silent.
a good or bad kind of silent?
Good because it made such a powerful impact on the audience. It was not a fun film to watch-in fact, it was difficult and painful to endure at times-but we all left the theater talking about how people could inflict such cruelty on each other. Which tells me the vast majority of the audience values kindness, empathy, and equity.
@@amadeus5889 agreed, great films aren't necessarily fun but evoke real emotion from us. for such a difficult viewing though and not expecting it, it's nice that your takeaway is that the audience probably has such values. thanks for sharing!
It had to be like seeing someone return from the dead! Superb acting capturing this touching moment.
like the movie cast away
We're all different. We're all the same. We need to treat everybody better.
Chiwetel Ejiofor should have gotten an oscar for this performance. He was the perfect actor to cast for this role. One of the best film performances in history.
It's disgusting what happened back then. We're all the same people. Brother and sister created in our father's image. I can never understand this kind of thinking. Treating people like animals.
Even animals do not deserve this treatment but I understand your sentiment
Makes me cry every time …
This scene is a direct contrast to the ending of The Killing Fields (1984) when Sydney Schanberg locates Dith Pran. He almost says the same thing 'Nothing to forgive. Sydney'. If you didn't cry in either this film or The Killing Fields, you ain't living. Both beautiful films regardless. Dr. Haing Ngnor (sp) and Chweitel are awesome actors.
If you don’t cry to this scene you’re not human.
I don't cry
you need to watch the entire more to know whats going on.
That broke me. I remember how much i hated being black as a child. I wanted to bleach my skin and relax my hair so i wouldnt stand out so much. My history teacher in high school decided to go off script and spent a week teaching us about the real lives of black people before, during, and after the civil war and it changed my world. Stories like this, heart breaking as they are, make me proud to be who i am. I claim my heritage with my chest out now because i know theres an endless stream of ancestors who fought tooth and nail, faced pain beyond my imagination and hardaches i only have to read about so that i could walk freely and proudly in my own skin. And thats a sacrifice i will never forget.
Judging from your profile pic seems like you still hate being black smh
Black people have some of the best genes... and it's your inner being that matters far above all physical details. This scene always makes my cry...
There's too much political narrativizing... Even when I read fiction like Uncle Tom's death and Eliza and George Harris' escape to Canada it had me in tears every time.
Insane that we can ever accept abusing our fellow inner experiencers.
Man, I cry every time I see this shyt! Mr. Parker was EVERYTHING in this movie and embodied EVERYTHING America really is supposed to be! Along with Brad Pitts character
AMEN
I've read the real Solomon's memoir and it's absolutely insane that this is a real story, I cannot imagine what he and his family went through. I'm sure they assumed they'd never see him again, they spent 12 years not knowing if he was alive or dead. And what he had to endure. And he was one of the "lucky ones," because his torment ended after 12 years. How many millions never went free? I watched this movie after watching Lincoln and it made Lincoln even more memorable; it really makes it hit home how important it was for Lincoln to win the war.
To be gone from his family, UNWILLINGLY, for 12 years, and the first thing he does is apologize and ask for forgiveness, shows how much more he cared about his family than all the pain he went through in that time
Chiwetel Ejiofor should've won an academy award for his performance.
So much emotion in this scene, you can’t help but not to feel it.
In the version that's edited for Florida he proudly shows off his new job skills.
Offff course
Genius!
Those guys would be ashamed to see what the black community has become with all the freedom they have now.
"The date, location and circumstances of Solomon's death are unknown."
While this is still true, there are clues that paint a picture of what may have happened...
"According to John R. Smith, in letters written in the 1930s, his father Rev. John L. Smith, a Methodist minister in Vermont, had worked with Northup and former slave Tabbs Gross in the early 1860s, during the Civil War, aiding fugitive slaves on the Underground Railroad. Northup was said to have visited Rev. Smith after Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, which was made in January 1863...It is believed by historians that he died in 1863 or 1864."
Therefore, an incredibly likely bookend to Solomon's story is that he was killed in a heroic effort to liberate black slaves. This not only makes logical sense but would (if true) be a morbidly beautiful end to the life of a man who endured such cruel horrors, a martyr for the holy cause of freedom.
It isn't "incredibly likely" he was killed that way. If he had died in such a matter, that likely would have been recorded.
Instead, he probably died from some illness like many people did at that time, but we really don't know.
@@Wasserkaktus
I do not claim that this theory is conclusively true or that other theories aren't equally, if not more, plausible (like you said, "we really don't know").
However, to dismiss that he was killed in the act of emancipation, based on the idea that "it would have been recorded", doesn't stand up to how we understand history. There are MANY names from the Underground Railroad that we do not know, and likely never will, that died in their efforts. However, we can still piece together what they did from surrounding bits of evidence.
In the case of Northup, we know that he was extensively involved in the Underground Railroad, that he disappeared at the height of the Civil War, and that no record appears of him being recaptured. True, he may have died of disease, but wouldn't it be more likely that THIS would have been recorded?
Such deaths aren't usually tailored to obscurity. Common diseases of the day (typhoid, dysentery, smallpox, etc.) were slow-acting, spread through populated environments, and would leave an identifiable body.
If he was killed, then it's very likely that Northup's body (like those of other such liberators) would have been seized by his killers and buried in an unmarked grave. Again, this is only speculation (until more evidence comes to light) but it is still INCREDIBLY likely as it was not a unique fate for those active in the Underground Railroad.
I am not crying something just went in both my eyeballs
mr parker is good friend.
Freedom
I cried so much with one scene.
So I haven’t had the pleasure of being able to watch the full movie before so I would like someone to possibly explain is the lady that walked up to him and hugged him is his daughter or his wife?
The first thing he does is to apologize. He apologizes...damn.
The whole scene is so heartbreaking to watch, but the part where he's introduced to his grandchild is what really gets me 😭
God, that is some absolutely astonishing acting right there... wow.
You don't watch it, you live it as if you are right there, the acting and story and everything so quiet yet so powerful and intense. This is the best movie I have watched in my 33 years of life.
Except u don’t actually live it. U just watch it
The only victory in this movie, for me, personally, is this scene. After 12 years of suffering, he finally got to return to the people who cared about him the most.
Made me cry all over again
How did his wife and children manage without him for 12 years. He wasn't there to provide for them. Did his wife have a job too?
Thank god and the angel and nice devil for getting him away from the horrible place . And great this disgusting slavery is cancelled . Thank you up to heaven Mr Lincoln 😊
Nice devil? Tf
That scene got me bawling like a baby
Could only watch this movie once
Greatest of all time movie ❤
Should of won the Oscar
Damn . . . . how anyone can be so Cruel
If you can watch that final scene and not get at least watery eyes something is wrong with you
Mordo deserves to be free and now is back to be with his family again from the evil south of slavery. Now Mordo must take revenge on Dr. Stephen Strange for selling him to Magneto and being beaten up by the Riddler.
Yeah this ain’t the comment section to do this at bro, have some respect please
Like what what are you talking about
@@jacobgarrity651 you’re making cringe comments about roller coaster movies over a scene that most likely happened in real life, real people went through this shit and all you can make is stupid ass superhero movies references cause your favorite celebrities are in them and your pallet for movies is mid, grow tf up and watch some real films and have some respect for once in your life
@@morningowl43oh shut up
Forgive me …………
I’m not crying you’re crying
Shyt like THIS, are the reasons the black family and family values are destroyed!
History in a nutshell. Once upon a time!
And the truth of the story was he was later kidnapped…. again to never been seen again
Heavy
Damn
These damn allergies
Alcohol is bad , he was captured few years later and went missing for good. Probably got killed. I represent the bad news sorry 😐
U hittin dat
I wish Lance Reddick got his iconic slave role
This scene was hilarious😅😅😅