12 Years A Slave (2013)

Typically the subject of many a memorable High School  History class, the issue of slavery is one attempted by so few directors, and creators, with the last being Michael Apted's beautiful, and yet ultimately white-man heroic 'Amazing Grace'. A biographical drama, 'Amazing Grace' was both uplifting, and heartbreaking, drawing parallels from many a star-studded Holocaust trauma, but, did ultimately lacked the powerful statement of independence within the enslaved. So, whilst these films showed the bravery of a privileged against a privileged, '12 Years A Slave' did something different.
And they did it brilliantly.
Telling the true story of freedman's son Solomon Northup; '12 Years A Slave' shows the entirety of a rich, and all too kindly man dragged kicking and screaming into mistaken captivity, pulled away from his family, and into the brutal life of a slave named 'Platt'. Chiwetel Ejiofor (previously of Love Actually, RedBelt, and Children Of Men) plays an absolutely gut-wrenching performance in this, wiping all other characters out in his breathtaking portrayal of resolution, and hatred, and sorrow, and desire, and everything everyone thinks a slave should never feel. Ejiofor doesn't play the part, he is the part. He is himself in the worst of positions, and he never falters in this conduct, pulling everything out of his repertoire to do this role the justice it deserves.
Taken from heartbreak to heartbreak, he is beaten, bruised and bottled away, hiding any semblance of intelligence for fear of a use worse than endless cotton picking. Benedict Cumberbatch, too, plays a genuine role of sweetness and underlying goodness, something much needed in such a dark setting, with his very first line bursting forth 'have you no mercy, man?' before taking his place as Solomon's first master. A secondary reviewer of this film called his character 'perhaps the cruelest of them all', a line which embodies so much, as through his kindness and sympathy for his slaves, rescuing them from the unflinching gazes of murderous overseerer's, saving the children, respecting the men for who they are, he teaches them nothing of the real life they face. Cumberbatch's presence in the film is felt desperately by characters and audience alike, and it's with a genuine slight to the heart that Solomon is pulled away from him, and presented to his next owners.
Insane, and tyrannical, Michael Fassbender, and Sarah Paulson play married couple, Mr and Mrs Edwin Epps, and to the best of their abilities, they are villains. They are wicked, and evil, with no excuses made, and no sympathy to be found for them. Both play their roles fantastically well, though personally, I for one, will never quite look at Fassbender the same after this deadly performance.
For the one, small criticism I have; There is a sense that Pitt's role within the film has been overplayed heavily. Though he directs predominantly, it should be said that his actual character has very little screen time, and too few lines to be actually remembered as significant, so for those drawn to the film expecting a glorified Hollywood starlet performance, lower your expectations. It seems his name counts for more in the trailer, than his actual role in the film does.
However, from plotlines, to performances, and in setting, and symbolical meaning, it's a deafening watch, and it feels important, somehow, in today's world. Midst comedies, and love stories, and tragedies, this is a story, and it is a story that needs to be told, and watched, and understood; it is a film that will surely go down in history.

American Hustle (2013)

With a cast littered in stars, from 'Hunger Games' actress Jennifer Lawrence, to the 'Avengers 'Jeremy Renner, 'American Hustle' had the clean cut promise of being this year's 'Now You See Me'; assurances of drama, wit, intelligence, shock! We wanted sensuality dripping off our screens, passion pulsating from the heels of the long legged girls who strut across our screen, mocking the deservedly mocked, for all their smug idiocy and fool-hardy misplaced trust. I, myself, anticipated a long, drawn out scheme, executed perfectly, stealing thousands of glittering dollars from the grubby hands of the band's ideal victim, sauntering off in the end, proving to the world that life can be clever, if only taken from the right perspective.

I got a 70's fashion disaster in sleazy America, with an overweight man and a woman with a poor accent, working in a dry cleaners.

Main character Irving Rosenfeld, lives, breathes and eats money; escaping the lives of his depressed and neurotic wife (Lawrence), and small, half-neglected son Danny, neither of whom are willing to divorce him from their existence, despite his wish for them to do so. Christian Bale plays an interesting performance here, not quite moving, but not quite laughable either. His character seems to portray desperation for the predominance of the film, which does come off well, but this seems to be the only emotion he conveys. His beautiful wife Sydney, played by 'Leap Year's' Amy Adams has a slightly more in-depth role, acting as not only a real life partner, but a fake British business partner, a seductive criminal mastermind, and an awkward if kindly step-mother to Danny. The one scene I would personally commend both her, and her on-screen counterpart, rogue FBI agent Bradley Cooper, on,is the pin-drop silence of the almost sex-scene between the two, the 'so close and yet so far' atmosphere becoming almost tangible within both the characters and the audience itself.

It should also be said, however, that Cooper does play his role well; for the insanity that is his role, anyway. His heart set on catching the two hustlers, his character Richie drives himself wild,using and abusing them to catch further scam-artists in the act, from low-money art thieves, to highly complex corruption cases within the political field of Jersey. His sweaty, yet stupidly ignorant portrayal is believable as a character, if a little high maintenance, but in the end, his downfall is satisfying to say the least.
A personal favourite amongst this bewildering cast is, possibly, the only half-decent character of the lot. Renner plays a sweet, if a little clumsy Mayor Carmine Polito, who from the very beginning shows himself to be a hands down family man, taking bullets both for his people, and for the people holding the gun, in this case. Whilst he does get a decent amount of screen time in this film, enough for the audience to warm to him anyway, if I were being honest, I would've preferred to see him in the starring role instead, rather than the depressing and 'sore-thumb' castings of Irving in the mix. Jennifer Lawrence is another, for though her acting is, as ever, flawless, her character appears to be walking contradiction of mental war-zone, and intelligence through ineptitude, as though she spends her day whining and sobbing over her depression and crippling social anxiety, when required of her, she willing and confidently storms down a party with Irvine, meeting Carmine's family with the ease of a high-class socialite, frustrating both the audience and the supporting characters apparently, judging by their reactions to the scene.

Even the plot itself is sticky, and awkward. No one seemed quite sure which heist they performing at any given time. There seemed to be too much going on, it was too busy. There were love triangles where they needed to be less, and there were less crimes than needed to be committed. Far from the gripping, slick scenes of 'Now You See Me', this was an un-enjoyable mish-mash of sober comedy attempts, and confusing gaping storylines, none of which had any great impact on the audience as a whole. If I were to award it in terms of stars, there would be few of those too.