"Roots" (1977) TV mini-series

User Rating:

8.7/10   

Directors:

Marvin J. Chomsky
John Erman

Writers:

William Blinn (adaptation)
William Blinn (screenplay)

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

23 tammikuu 1977 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | War

Plot:

A dramatization of author Alex Haley's family line from ancestor Kunta Kinte's enslavement to his descendents' liberation.

Plot Keywords:

Slavery | Freedom | African American | Civil War | Escape Attempt

Awards:

Won Golden Globe. Another 14 wins & 35 nominations

Cast

Olivia Cole	...	Mathilda (5 episodes, 1977)
LeVar Burton	...	Kunta Kinte / ... (4 episodes, 1977)
Ben Vereen	...	'Chicken' George Moore (4 episodes, 1977)
Louis Gossett Jr.	...	Fiddler (4 episodes, 1977)
Vic Morrow	...	Ames (4 episodes, 1977)
Ji-Tu Cumbuka	...	Wrestler (3 episodes, 1977)
Edward Asner	...	Capt. Thomas Davies (3 episodes, 1977)
Ralph Waite	...	Slater (3 episodes, 1977)
Robert Reed	...	Dr. William Reynolds (3 episodes, 1977)
Lynda Day George	...	Mrs. Reynolds (3 episodes, 1977)
John Amos	...	Toby (3 episodes, 1977)
Madge Sinclair	...	Bell Reynolds (3 episodes, 1977)
Leslie Uggams	...	Kizzy Reynolds (3 episodes, 1977)
Carolyn Jones	...	Mrs. Moore (3 episodes, 1977)
Lloyd Bridges	...	Evan Brent (3 episodes, 1977)
Georg Stanford Brown	...	Tom Harvey (3 episodes, 1977)
Brad Davis	...	Ol' George Johnson (3 episodes, 1977)
Hilly Hicks	...	Lewis (3 episodes, 1977)
Lynne Moody	...	Irene Harvey (3 episodes, 1977)
Lane Binkley	...	Martha Johnson (3 episodes, 1977)
Austin Stoker	...	Virgil (3 episodes, 1977)
Sandy Duncan	...	Missy Anne Reynolds (3 episodes, 1977)
Chuck Connors	...	Tom Moore (3 episodes, 1977)
Tracey Gold	...	Young missy reynolds (3 episodes, 1977)
Moses Gunn	...	Kintango (2 episodes, 1977)
Thalmus Rasulala	...	Omoro (2 episodes, 1977)
Hari Rhodes	...	Brima Cesay (2 episodes, 1977)
William Watson	...	Gardner (2 episodes, 1977)
Ren Woods	...	Fanta (2 episodes, 1977)
Lorne Greene	...	John Reynolds (2 episodes, 1977)
Thayer David	...	Harlan (2 episodes, 1977)
Scatman Crothers	...	Mingo (2 episodes, 1977)
George Hamilton	...	Stephen Bennett (2 episodes, 1977)
Richard Roundtree	...	Sam Bennett (2 episodes, 1977)
Richard McKenzie	...	Sam Harvey (2 episodes, 1977)
John Quade	...	Sheriff Biggs (2 episodes, 1977)
Cicely Tyson	...	Binta (2 episodes, 1977)
Tina Andrews	...	Aurelia (2 episodes, 1977)
Joe Dorsey	...	Calvert (2 episodes, 1977)
Richard Farnsworth	...	Slave catcher (2 episodes, 1977)
Rachel Longaker	...	Caroline (2 episodes, 1977)
Ernest Thomas	...	Kailuba (2 episodes, 1977)

Also Known As:

"Juuret" (Finland) [fi]

Runtime:

573 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:PG (cut) | Australia:M | Singapore:PG | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Administration Building, Malibu Creek State Park - 1925 Las Virgenes Road, Calabasas, California, USA

Company:

David L. Wolper Productions

Trivia:

Originally broadcast on ABC as eight one-hour and two-hour episodes as follows: Episodes 1,2,6, and 8 were two hours; Episodes 3,4,5, and 7 were one hour. Presented on VHS, DVD, and rebroadcast as six two-hour episodes.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: Much of the topography and flora throughout the series is simply wrong for the areas in which it was set. This is especially true for the Reynolds plantation, located in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, which is shown to be mountainous with a lot of plants native to arid areas (e.g. Southern California). Spotsylvania is neither.

Quotes:

Kunta Kinti: What's snow, Fiddler?
Fiddler: Never you mind, boy, never you mind. Let's get on back to home. I got enough trouble teaching you the difference between manure and massa. 'Course there ain't all that much difference when you gets right down to it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Prison Break: Tonight (#1.20)" (2006)

Soundtrack:

Oluwa

powerful

I only know how to summarize this series in one word...powerful. I saw it for the first time a couple of weeks ago and it literally took my breath away. The issue of slavery has always upset me quite a great deal and this movie only made me so angry that I couldn't do anything while it was happening.The series is done so well I don't even know if I can critique.All I have to say is go watch it if you haven't seen it yet.It's beyond incredible.It displays the cruelty which was deemed acceptable in those times and the struggle of the central characters.If a movie has never made you cry before,it will this time.The acting is superb and it will quickly make you forget that you're watching a product of tv execs.