Every Steve McQueen Movie Ranked Worst To Best

3. 12 Years A Slave (2013)

12 Years A Slave
Source: Fox Searchlight

One of the greatest cinematic achievements of the last decade, 12 Years A Slave bagged McQueen his much-deserved Best Picture Oscar, and in doing so became perhaps the definitive work of cinema ever made about the horrors of slavery in America.

Based on the harrowing book of the same name by freeman-turned-slave Solomon Northup (played in the film by a haunting Chiwetel Ejiofor), the historical drama charts Northup's days as a slave in the American South, and documents how, despite everything, he held out hope to one day be a free man once more.

Brought to searing, unforgettable life by its all-star cast, which includes an Oscar-winning Lupita Nyong'o, a vile Michael Fassbender and a conflicted Benedict Cumberbatch, 12 Years A Slave isn't exactly easy viewing, but its cast, musical score and McQueen's patient direction nonetheless makes it a true cinematic masterpiece, and one of the most deserving Best Picture winners of all time.

Contributor

Aidan Whatman hasn't written a bio just yet, but if they had... it would appear here.