Roots (2016) on History and A&E. Has anybody been watching?

dont_be_a_wuss · Franchise Player Joined: 29 Mar 2012 Posts: 21499

History and A&E have started airing this new remake on the classic miniseries yesterday. It received a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, for whatever that is worth. It took a bit of the first episode for me to get in to it, but by the end I was really enjoying it, and happy to hear episode 2 airs tonight.

Anybody watching?

jodeke · Posted: Tue May 31, 2016 10:12 pm Post subject:

Difficult to watch. Original Roots softened some of the disgust and anger.

Interesting how the slaves communicated in song language to try to take the ship.

I have the series on record. Don't know if I'll watch all episodes.

It's along the lines of Underground.

Thanks for the head up.
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numero-ocho · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 6:54 am Post subject:

I watched the first episode up to the part where Kunta arrived on the farm and met Fiddler and then gave up on it. It was too difficult not to compare it to original which series which was one of the best television series ever produced. I didn't feel the acting or pace of the story was up to par compared the original. That isn't surprising considering the original series cast and it was stretched out over seven episodes.

The producers claim the original doesn't resonate with the newer generation. How so? The original certainly showcased the brutality of slavery. Even by today's television standards, the original's content is very graphic.

One thing that got me from the start was how Kunta was captured. In this version, he was captured and sold to slavers by a rival family. I watched it and kept wonder what happened to the story that was handed down through generation after generation of how Kunta was captured while searching for wood to make a drum?
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lakersken80 · Retired Number Joined: 12 Aug 2009 Posts: 38789

Snoop ain't gonna watch.

dont_be_a_wuss · Franchise Player Joined: 29 Mar 2012 Posts: 21499

Legacy · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 9:17 am Post subject:

I sort of stumbled on to this one, but I'm glad I did. Two very enthusiastic thumbs up.

Aussiesuede · Franchise Player Joined: 27 Jul 2005 Posts: 10964

I watched the original last week so that I could better compare and contrast. Observations thus far:

1) This version is predictably more PC. They've veered from telling the story of a family in the primary and instead seem to desire to tell the story of an era.

2) This version just glosses over the tragedy of how slave families were destroyed. The original did a much better job of depicting this particular horror than this version has thus far.

3) I still can't tell if they chose to give the slaveowners English accents so that the audience could subconciously detach themselves from having any relationship to the reality- or if their intent was to try to be more historically accurate? One thing is for sure, Giving Master Waller a worn Cockney accent makes absolutely no sense at all. We're supposed to believe that an 18th century Cockney married a proper Englishwoman and had an proper English brother and enough money to start plantation operations in an English colony? Seriously?

4) The "N" word was not used liberally in North America until the 1800's, and this story is supposed to be set in the late 1700's. So they're obviously using it for shock value as opposed to historical accuracy which makes me suspicious of their desire for historical accuracy.

I'm looking forward to see how Part 2 continues. But thus far it's not holding a candle to the original.
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jodeke · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 10:23 am Post subject:

Aussiesuede wrote:

numero-ocho · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 10:57 am Post subject:

Theseus · Franchise Player Joined: 15 Dec 2007 Posts: 14208

I loved the first. I remember watching the whole series over the course of a month in my us government class in high school. It was very moving, and emotional. I can't imagine this new one will hold a candle to it, but I'll give it a try after its finished

dont_be_a_wuss · Franchise Player Joined: 29 Mar 2012 Posts: 21499

I need to rewatch the original. I was so young when I watched it I don't really remember much of it, and didn't really understand it.

The first 2 episodes are available on History.com gratis

http://www.history.com/shows/roots/season-1/episode-1

jodeke · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 9:34 pm Post subject:

Legacy · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 9:41 pm Post subject:

jodeke · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 9:44 pm Post subject:

Legacy · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 9:48 pm Post subject:

jodeke · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 9:54 pm Post subject:

non-player zealot · Franchise Player Joined: 05 Nov 2007 Posts: 21365

Sedale Threatt Jr (although Sr didn't bother), is in this. Man, spittin image.

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