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Roots (1977)
Rate:
10
Viewed:
8/15, 12/20
8/15:
If there is a definitive black American motion picture, it's Roots.
Starting out as a novel in 1976 by Alex Haley about nine generations of African descendants, Roots was
developed into a TV miniseries a year later, and just about everybody in the country watched it, setting viewership records.
For ten hours, Roots is a powerfully moving story about the lives of black slaves owned by
white slaveholders in plantations run by white overseers over 120 years. Although a potential viewer may be fooled
by the TV look, there's really nothing like it before or ever since.
There are many ups and (mostly) downs throughout the ordeal; obviously, no dramatic acts of heroism are undertaken,
but rather, there are countless scenes of black slaves putting their heads down and taking the abuse. The transcendental power is
within the formation of the lineage which is often tainted with miscegnation; eventually, the family of Kunta Kinte survives,
overcomes the system, and is finally free from the fetters of slavery.
What I love about the portrayal of their lives is the historical accuracy of the slavery era. It's hard to find anything that
isn't consistent with what I have read about the topic, and I'm sure it was more brutal than shown in Roots. It's only
that I wish the language spoken in the Africa segment was Mandinka until the just-turned-slaves crossed over the Atlantic Ocean
and were forced to assimilate.
Nevertheless, I'm impressed with the prevalence of the N-word, female nudity in Africa, and treatment of blacks
by whites. In so many ways, Roots beats the pants off of Gone with the Wind by destroying
the myth of the Old South. However, it's hard to say if the saga makes for appropriate viewing in schools because of its
immense power which can be misconstrued. There's one thing that needs to be kept in reminder: slavery isn't unique to the
United States of America or blacks; it happened to all races in every continent. In fact, there were more white slaves than
black slaves in colonial America during the late 17th century.
Of course, Roots has a lot of conflicting messages. Should whites be punished for what they did to
blacks? Should blacks take arms and kill whites for payback? How should blacks feel after slavery has ended?
What's the correct resolution for what blacks had suffered? Should they go back to Africa and reclaim their roots?
How should the ex-slaves view their white ex-slaveholders? Truth be told, a very high percentage of blacks currently living
don't have a lineage to former American slaves, and there were plenty of black slaveholders back then.
Meanwhile, the performances are uniformly excellent on both sides. However as hard as it is to single out anyone, it's
undeniable that Louis Gossett, Jr., Madge Sinclair, and Ben Vereen give the most moving performances as Fiddler, Bell,
and Chicken George, respectively.
All in all, Roots is among a handful of must-see films for all Americans.
12/20:
Not just a motion picture, Roots is an experience.
Powerful, absorbing, racially stirring, and controversial, it ranks right up there with
Schindler's List and The Killing Fields. Backed
by an uniformly outstanding cast, Roots was honored with 37 Primetime Emmy Award
nominations, winning nine of them. Aired on eight consecutive nights from January 23 to 30, 1977, it was seen by over 130
million people with the finale being the, hitherto but now third, most-watched episode ever in TV history.
There's nothing like it: from village life to slavecatchers in Africa, from slave ship to slave auction, from forced
submission to plantation work, and from whipping to rape. Zero freedom is given to the blacks who are routinely called
"niggers" and treated no more than a piece of property. Generations of them are forced to wait to be finally free, and
many of their souls had already died before their bodies plain wore out. No brutality is ever spared by the whites.
As outstanding as everybody is, there are a few who stand out, and they're Louis Gossett, Jr., Ben
Vereen, and Lloyd Bridges. Edward Asner, Lorne Greene, Vic Morrow, Chuck Connors, and Georg Stanford Brown are really good,
and Leslie Uggams, Sandy Duncan, and Madge Sinclair are unforgettable as well. It's hard to leave out others
because they're so many of them, spanning seven generations.
Unfortunately, the story of Roots is fiction although there's absolutely no doubt of what happened. It was probably a
lot more brutal than what's shown. Today, there are people who say slavery was a uniquely black experience which is 100% untrue.
It did exist for all races as far back as human history was first recorded.
A major contributor to the interest of genealogy, Roots author Alex Haley was sued by Harold Courlander for plagiarism
from The African which was written nine years prior, forcing him to settle out of court for $650,000. The trouble with
his novel is that it's not confirmed by historical records and that it's often contradictory in dates. In fact, during episode V of the
miniseries, you'll notice the Nat Turner event is dated wrong, being ten years too late. No matter what, Haley deserves
accolades for capturing the nation's attention about the black experience during the 18th and 19th centuries in both continents.
All in all, there's Roots, and there's the rest of black cinema.