'12 Years a Slave' wins best picture Oscar
Will Smith, right, presents Brad Pitt with the award for the best picture for "12 Years a Slave" during the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday, March 2, 2014, in Los Angeles. - Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP
Harrowing historical drama "12 Years a Slave" won the coveted best picture Oscar on Sunday, at the climax of the 86th Academy Awards.
The movie by British director Steve McQueen beat eight fellow nominees -- "American Hustle," "Captain Phillips," "Dallas Buyers Club," "Gravity," "Her," "Nebraska," "Philomena," and "The Wolf of Wall Street."
The film tells the story of Solomon Northup, a free black man living in New York state who is kidnapped and sold into slavery in the South before the US Civil War.
"Everyone -- everyone deserves not only to survive, but to live. This is the most important legacy of Solomon Northup," said McQueen, also one of the film's producers.
"I'm dedicating this award to all the people who have suffered slavery and who are still suffering in slavery today."
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