Roots

All my life I have heard the same old "smoke screens" every time something happens to expose the history of racism in this country that they don't want to acknowledge. That is the case with "Roots", and all the rationalizations used by these people to try and denigrate the story's impact. It does not change the fact that racism is "as American as apple pie". But these people never give up. It has been over 40 years since "Roots", and while things may have improved, we still have a long, long, long, long way to go.

I was born in 1980, and had heard of Roots from reading about LeVar Burton being the only real "name" to join Star Trek: The Next Generation. I came across the boxset at my local library and was able to find out what this "Roots" thing was all about. Having the series on DVD was definitely a boon as (despite being in NTSC) it has a crisp and clear appearance, usually stuff on TV from the 70's or 80's has a characteristic fuzziness.

Despite it's lowish budget, and age, Roots has a certain kinetic energy, it kept me interested from the start. Being able to see a young LeVar Burton was great, and without any visors or contact lenses. The casting was excellent all around and the actors put in 100% effort. My only bone to pick was using two different actors for Kunta Kinte. They were physically very different, John Amos doesn't look, act or sound like LeVar Burton, which disrupts the sense of continuity the rest of the multi-episode characters had.

By the end I found I had become quite involved with the series and enjoyed seeing it unfold, I liked it so much I viewed the whole nine hours again with commentary (well, I had time to kill). It is interesting that Roots carries a sense of history (as in the late 70's) and culture with it, it's not just a TV show, there's a whole air surrounding it. I'm glad I got the opportunity to see it, I gained a clearer understanding of where African-Americans as a people are coming from, and I hope everyone who hasn't seen it yet gets the opportunity to do so.

In 1765 Kunta Kinte, a 15 year old boy, is captured by slavers near his village in Gambia. He is transported to America and sold at auction to a landowner in Virginia. Thus begins the generations-spanning tale of Kunta Kinte and his descendants.

A classic TV series, based on Alex Haley's book of the same name. The narrative is a true one, based on Haley's own family history, the details of which have been handed down from generation to generation.

Quite the epic story, spanning over 100 years and showing the African-American experience quite vividly. Quite balanced in the way the story is told. While Kunta Kinte and his descendants' experience is horrendous and slavery is heinous, the writers and director avoid cheap soapboxing, empty stereotypes and cartoonish villains. This results in a realistic, edifying, lasting impression.

Alex Haley really did a great job experimenting his family tree, I'm amazed he was able to do that much research, and just make a great mini-series out of it. The one thing this series does is just shock you, it teaches you how cruel slavery was, and how much you really didn't know that they were supposed to teach you in school.

One thing I love about this series is how touching it all really is. The marriages of the slaves, the jobs of the slaves, and the story about Chicken George is just very cool. I know to some this series is just very depicting, and to some whites, they feel it's making them responsible for slavery. But what the series is teaching you, is that we should all learn about our mistakes in history, and accept what we are, and try to change for the better without finger pointing.

This series shocked alot of people, and sparked alot of controversy, but it's worth seeing, for any race, for any generation, in any country. Alex Haley, I take my hat off to you.

I just watched the ist two episodes on dvd. and I'm speechless. get this movie and bring friends. It brings so much to the table other than slavery. It spoke volumes to me. Levar Burton is a revelation and it surprises me that he isn't doing more movies. He reminded me of those silent film stars who show with their eyes.