TV: Roots Remake Fills Out Its Incredibly Large Cast, Premieres TONIGHT 5/30

[ThaBurgerPimp]

They've changed the whole shit up.

that opening disclaimer narrated by Fishburne..he sounds kind of bored

"The following historical program contains intense language of the time period.
(after short pause)
And violence.
(pause)
Viewer discretion is advised."​

 

[Damn Right]

why do we need a remake tho...

cause there's dayum near 2 generations of young black folk who never even saw the first one and won't even bother watching the first one cause they feel it's 2 'old' for them to get any value from it

generations of young brothers and sisters who don't know sheit about black history (although roots is BASED on true events from Haley's family history and combines several characters) and worse could care less. a steady stream of ignorance about themselves is why roots needed to be remade. it's not as good as the first one but it still shows the power of the ancestors. to survive that brutal, barbaric system only showed how strong black folks were. although I doubt it's ratings will be anywhere near the ratings or historical cultural significance of the original

 

[exiledking]

cause there's dayum near 2 generations of young black folk who never even saw the first one and won't even bother watching the first one cause they feel it's 2 'old' for them to get any value from it

generations of young brothers and sisters who don't know sheit about black history (although roots is BASED on true events from Haley's family history and combines several characters) and worse could care less. a steady stream of ignorance about themselves is why roots needed to be remade. although I doubt it's ratings will be anywhere near the ratings or historical cultural significance of the original

they could easily just watch the old one.


And btw the story is NOT based on Haley's family history.

 

[Damn Right]

they could easily just watch the old one.


And btw the story is NOT based on Haley's family history.

the original 'roots' was based on the book written by alex haley. I don't know if this remake is close to the book or not, as I've only watched the episodes that featured kunta running for his freedom up through his daughter being sold away.

 

[muckraker10021]

cause there's dayum near 2 generations of young black folk who never even saw the first one and won't even bother watching the first one cause they feel it's 2 'old' for them to get any value from it

generations of young brothers and sisters who don't know sheit about black history (although roots is BASED on true events from Haley's family history and combines several characters) and worse could care less. a steady stream of ignorance about themselves is why roots needed to be remade. it's not as good as the first one but it still shows the power of the ancestors. to survive that brutal, barbaric system only showed how strong black folks were. although I doubt it's ratings will be anywhere near the ratings or historical cultural significance of the original

You are 100% correct, youngsters can tell you which rappers are currently in jail more accurately than they know American history and the African experience in AmeriKKKa



Go to the page below, read the first post, download the 56 page excerpt from the book. Cac's are Barbarians!




GO TO ~~ 100 YEARS OF LYNCHING - by Ralph Ginzburg ~~

GO TO ~~ 100 YEARS OF LYNCHING - by Ralph Ginzburg ~~

 

[hussla's paradice]

the original 'roots' was based on the book written by alex haley. I don't know if this remake is close to the book or not, as I've only watched the episodes that featured kunta running for his freedom up through his daughter being sold away.

For artistic dramatization, they deviated from the original. In the 1st Roots, no Honkies were harmed. In this one, they show King Kunta killing Krakkkas. Fiddler too.

 

[exiledking]

the original 'roots' was based on the book written by alex haley. I don't know if this remake is close to the book or not, as I've only watched the episodes that featured kunta running for his freedom up through his daughter being sold away.

yes it was...and Alex plagiarized the book from another source

 

[Amajorfucup]

For artistic dramatization, they deviated from the original. In the 1st Roots, no Honkies were harmed. In this one, they show King Kunta killing Krakkkas. Fiddler too.

Good to know. I'm hearing good things about it so far. Looking forward to checking it out.

Was against the remake initially but it's cool for the younger generation to see the story and be able to have it more relatable by using familiar faces to play parts.

 

[egatsby]

I vividly remember watching the first Roots at maybe 9 or 10yrs old it helped fuel my hate for white people for years. 12 Years of Slaves is one of my favorite movies. I don't really consider it a slave movie the symbolism in the film is missed on most people. This new Roots is needed for a new generation. The story of us must be told over and over again and passed down to every generation. Not just this story but all stories I feel like it's important to our identity as a people. It helps us understand. For everyone above 30 its really not for you.

 

[man-machine]

Thats rich as hell. I want to support, but $30 per DVD? Is that the standard/ typical price before DVDs nowadays? I've been bootlegging too long

You can find some Bluray movies at $5.99 some old dvd's are $2.50. The new Deadpoole release was $24.99 or less with BD & DVD & digital copies.

I have watched "some" of this "New" Roots and while I can't say its bad or dismiss it entirely there is something to be said for the original. I watched the HD version of the original Roots recently and it evoked the same emotions in me as it did when I saw it 10 years ago. Before then I had not seen it since I was a kid and there are certain things you can't appreciate about the plight of Kunta Kinte until you're an adult and have lived as one. The modern spin has certain "Qualities" that reflect the modern era such as more empowered female characters. White folks are still Ass-holes Supreme and the brutality appears intact. The Female nudity is gone (AFAIK) which perhaps speaks to the female empowerment angle or modern hangups with sexuality. I suppose the new version will enlighten youngsters but you have to wonder why these kids haven't done any online investigation of Slavery on their on. Just out of curiosity. If just a handful of the viewers research on their own then this outing will be worth it.

 

[ankhheru]

As a student of world history and Africans place in it I can appreciate what I have seen so far. They show a lot of African traditions pre slavery and show the links that slaves still had to it even generations removed.

It shows the true nature of whites and also shows Africans in slavery as hero's and a people who fought. The old version never showed any whites being harmed. It also didn't show Kizzie trying to keep her fathers tradition alive.

I like what I see so far. Kunta questioning the English motive really struck a chord. The way he raised his daughter to have a warrior spirit.

We need the Maafa told in a way that places us in proper context and this is a start. We need to keep the devil's nature in the face of our children. To many of our children are post racial idiots.

 

[CptMARVEL]

The remake of "Roots" is not a complete surprise.
Hollywood is in the business of taking past success and regurgitating them for a new (younger) audience.
This version of Roots is a direct result of the surprising success of movies like:

Thus; Hollywood figures that they will strike while the iron is still hot.
They start producing shows that are in the same vein. Like:

Now you've got:

And let's face it; Hollywood has NEVER been comfortable producing images of Blacks outside of those narratives.
We're either slaves, thugs, pimps, ho's, criminals, "reality show thots", bed wenches and just plain dysfunctional...

Which is part of the reason why The Black Panther needs to be a success.

 

[ankhheru]

 

[WattDogs]

Why is it that everyone wants to throw the Jews into something? The Jews get paid & paid well from the Holocaust. They get so many benefits & luxuries from guilt tripping about the Holocaust.

What does Roots & these other slave movies do for us? Educate our kids? You should be having them read a damn book about it or do some research. That's a crap excuse. All this "leaving education to the boob tube" is why kids are the way they are now.

So, what's the true benefit for all of these slave movies? I guarantee, it is not for us. If it was, Spike would be telling the story. Tyler Perry would be telling the story. And I promise you, it wouldn't be about slavery.

Why remake Roots but not Shaka Zulu? I'd rather see a Shaka Zulu remake than Roots any day of the year. Or, hell, what's going on with that Nat Turner story? I wouldn't mind a good biopic about Haille Selassie.

Why is it always slavery? Y'all gotta start asking these questions.

 

[Damn Right]

yes it was...and Alex plagiarized the book from another source

not the entire book. he later admitted that an 'assistant' fuked up and parts of kunta's personality was taken from another source. he paid out of court for it but at this point nobody disputes that the character of kunta wasn't a total original idea

 

[yaBoi]

cause there's dayum near 2 generations of young black folk who never even saw the first one and won't even bother watching the first one cause they feel it's 2 'old' for them to get any value from it

generations of young brothers and sisters who don't know sheit about black history (although roots is BASED on true events from Haley's family history and combines several characters) and worse could care less. a steady stream of ignorance about themselves is why roots needed to be remade. it's not as good as the first one but it still shows the power of the ancestors. to survive that brutal, barbaric system only showed how strong black folks were. although I doubt it's ratings will be anywhere near the ratings or historical cultural significance of the original

what makes you think that the needed audience will give enough of a fuck to watch this one...

i'll answer... they won't

 

[largebillsonlyplease]

I dont know if I'll watch it however i support this being on tv

 

[largebillsonlyplease]

The remake of "Roots" is not a complete surprise.
Hollywood is in the business of taking past success and regurgitating them for a new (younger) audience.
This version of Roots is a direct result of the surprising success of movies like:

Thus; Hollywood figures that they will strike while the iron is still hot.
They start producing shows that are in the same vein. Like:

Now you've got:

And let's face it; Hollywood has NEVER been comfortable producing images of Blacks outside of those narratives.
We're either slaves, thugs, pimps, ho's, criminals, "reality show thots", bed wenches and just plain dysfunctional...

Which is part of the reason why The Black Panther needs to be a success.

that's just not true. lol.

most of it is we gotta go support all the movies featuring us.
but i can name 15 major release black films that don't fit the narrative you're talking about in the past 5 years.

 

[Damn Right]

what makes you think that the needed audience will give enough of a fuck to watch this one...

i'll answer... they won't

man I hope you're wrong.

 

[dawilleyone]

As a student of world history and Africans place in it I can appreciate what I have seen so far. They show a lot of African traditions pre slavery and show the links that slaves still had to it even generations removed.

It shows the true nature of whites and also shows Africans in slavery as hero's and a people who fought. The old version never showed any whites being harmed. It also didn't show Kizzie trying to keep her fathers tradition alive.

I like what I see so far. Kunta questioning the English motive really struck a chord. The way he raised his daughter to have a warrior spirit.

We need the Maafa told in a way that places us in proper context and this is a start. We need to keep the devil's nature in the face of our children. To many of our children are post racial idiots.

I concur with your assessment 100%. This is a much improved version in a lot of ways. The expansion on the culture of the Gambian region alone is worth the update. The casting is the only thing that doesn't feel as good to me.

They are using Alex Haley's original story to tell the bigger story of African Americans under slavery. I don't think the bit about Blacks fighting for the British during the revolutionary war or fighting on both sides of the Civil war were explored in the original, but they are thing's we've learned a lot more about in the past 40 years so I applaud them for including it in the story.

 

[exiledking]

Why is it that everyone wants to throw the Jews into something? The Jews get paid & paid well from the Holocaust. They get so many benefits & luxuries from guilt tripping about the Holocaust.

What does Roots & these other slave movies do for us? Educate our kids? You should be having them read a damn book about it or do some research. That's a crap excuse. All this "leaving education to the boob tube" is why kids are the way they are now.

So, what's the true benefit for all of these slave movies? I guarantee, it is not for us. If it was, Spike would be telling the story. Tyler Perry would be telling the story. And I promise you, it wouldn't be about slavery.

Why remake Roots but not Shaka Zulu? I'd rather see a Shaka Zulu remake than Roots any day of the year. Or, hell, what's going on with that Nat Turner story? I wouldn't mind a good biopic about Haille Selassie.

Why is it always slavery? Y'all gotta start asking these questions.

Facts.

 

[exiledking]

I concur with your assessment 100%. This is a much improved version in a lot of ways. The expansion on the culture of the Gambian region alone is worth the update. The casting is the only thing that doesn't feel as good to me.

They are using Alex Haley's original story to tell the bigger story of African Americans under slavery. I don't think the bit about Blacks fighting for the British during the revolutionary war or fighting on both sides of the Civil war were explored in the original, but they are thing's we've learned a lot more about in the past 40 years so I applaud them for including it in the story.

Lol y'all still think it's Alex Haleys original story

 

[exiledking]

not the entire book. he later admitted that an 'assistant' fuked up and parts of kunta's personality was taken from another source. he paid out of court for it but at this point nobody disputes that the character of kunta wasn't a total original idea

Lol not . It's highly doubtful that Alex has any ancestor from Gambia at all

 

[dawilleyone]

Lol y'all still think it's Alex Haleys original story

you know what I meant. His book is the foundation for which the mini series is based upon. I'm not disputing he didn't borrow or steal from others.

 

[Damn Right]

Lol not . It's highly doubtful that Alex has any ancestor from Gambia at all

you have any proof to cite? because he gave plenty of interviews explaining how and why he used a mix of genealogy with bits of fiction to write 'roots'.

 

[exiledking]

you have any proof to cite? because he gave plenty of interviews explaining how and why he used a mix of genealogy with bits of fiction to write 'roots'.

I'm sure you googled it after I said it. There are far too many links for you to explore on the subject beyond what he said.

 

[playahaitian]

John Amos Weighs In On Snoop Dogg’s Comments About Roots Remake

Snoop Dogg made headlines across the internet when he called for a boycott of the new rendition of the Roots miniseries.

The West Coast rap legend took issue with the entertainment industry making another story centered around slavery. The 76-year-old actor starred as Kunta Kinte in the original 1977 version of Roots.

“Each generation should be at least superficially exposed to it, if not in depth, so things have more meaning and more relevance in regards to where we are as a society now,” Amos said to ABC Radio about Snoop’s comments. “If you don’t know your history, you can’t learn from it.

“I think it’s good that it’s being retold in the new version of Roots,” Amos added. “But again, I think their work is cut out for them because people have so many choices today and quite frankly there is an aversion to looking back at our history and repeating it.”

While the first episode of the Roots remake did not draw in the incomparable 130 million viewers as the original, the History channel 2016 production collected the biggest overall audience for a cable miniseries opening in three years.

On Monday evening, 5.3 million people watched the first airing of Roots over the History, A&E, and Lifetime simulcast. The series based on Alex Haley’s Roots: The Saga of an American Family collected a total of 8.5 million viewers during the whole night including re-airings

 

[Tuco]

Why is it that everyone wants to throw the Jews into something? The Jews get paid & paid well from the Holocaust. They get so many benefits & luxuries from guilt tripping about the Holocaust.

What does Roots & these other slave movies do for us? Educate our kids? You should be having them read a damn book about it or do some research. That's a crap excuse. All this "leaving education to the boob tube" is why kids are the way they are now.

So, what's the true benefit for all of these slave movies? I guarantee, it is not for us. If it was, Spike would be telling the story. Tyler Perry would be telling the story. And I promise you, it wouldn't be about slavery.

Why remake Roots but not Shaka Zulu? I'd rather see a Shaka Zulu remake than Roots any day of the year. Or, hell, what's going on with that Nat Turner story? I wouldn't mind a good biopic about Haille Selassie.

Why is it always slavery? Y'all gotta start asking these questions.

REAL TALK!

 

[the13thround]

The remake of "Roots" is not a complete surprise.
Hollywood is in the business of taking past success and regurgitating them for a new (younger) audience.
This version of Roots is a direct result of the surprising success of movies like:

Thus; Hollywood figures that they will strike while the iron is still hot.
They start producing shows that are in the same vein. Like:

Now you've got:

You also forgot....

 

[Damn Right]

I'm sure you googled it after I said it. There are far too many links for you to explore on the subject beyond what he said.

actually, I didn't since it was settled decades ago.

 

[Complex]

I'm surprised how good this is.

How many of you watch movies 20 years before you were born?

White people want us to forget about slavery and not to be portrayed as evil.

 

[Amajorfucup]

As a student of world history and Africans place in it I can appreciate what I have seen so far. They show a lot of African traditions pre slavery and show the links that slaves still had to it even generations removed.

It shows the true nature of whites and also shows Africans in slavery as hero's and a people who fought. The old version never showed any whites being harmed. It also didn't show Kizzie trying to keep her fathers tradition alive.

I like what I see so far. Kunta questioning the English motive really struck a chord. The way he raised his daughter to have a warrior spirit.

We need the Maafa told in a way that places us in proper context and this is a start. We need to keep the devil's nature in the face of our children. To many of our children are post racial idiots.

Absolutely... They did a dam good job using the original as an outline and adding more nuance and dimension.

....Why is it always slavery? Y'all gotta start asking these questions.

This narrative is as false as it is idiotic.. We've had all of 5 "slave" focused productions in the last 40 years... What is this "always" dumb ass shit you niggas keep spouting off!!??

I'm surprised how good this is.

Yea man.. I was a critic of the idea when announced.. But i have been very pleased thus far with what i have seen.

 

[stretchwallz]

I just watched part 1. Very good and I remember watching the original live as a kid. The African scenes and traditions on the Gambia river were exceptional (better than original)

I'm surprised how good this is.

How many of you watch movies 20 years before you were born?

White people want us to forget about slavery and not to be portrayed as evil.

Agreed

 

[MoneyMakingMoe]

I just want to add my 2 cents since I'm currently deeply involved in this subject manner

I'm turning 30 this year and I never watched the original Roots. I would tell my parents when I was younger that I didn't want to watch black people all fucked up and ashy. As a teenager I didn't want to accept that that use to be my people. Now that I'm older I understand that I wanted to know the greatness of black people and not be forced to focus on slavery.

Now I'm currently a high school World History teacher. I understand the kids because I use to think just like them. I try to throw in all the hidden history of melinated people in the lesson plans and show them the systemic oppression that has put us in the conditions we're in. This new generation is a result of terrible educational institutions. They have a short attention span and are oblivious to what's going on. We tend to take for granted that we've learned so much now that we're adults but this current generation is completely distracted from the issues of the past.

I'm in my 20s and this generation doesn't even respect my era of hip hop (Roc-A-Fella, State Property, Dipset). They have a different vibe and very little respect or awareness of what came before them.

So with that being said, my students really needed this. And I also needed this. After teaching so much of this history and me myself being of African descent, this was an emotional experience for me. It felt more relevant as well. I think the issue is not too many slave movies being made but too many slave movies not done the right way. I love that they showed the culture in Africa before slavery. In my opinion, a great movie would be one based on the Haitian revolution. If they showed the different Cultures in Africa and how many different types of Africans were shipped to Haiti it would be a great eye opener. Also, to show the greatest slave rebellion would be empowering. They also need to show the drastic measures taken by Napoleon and other white people to make sure Haiti would never be a symbol of courage to Black people.

I have no problems with movies like this as long as we leave feeling informed, empowered, and touched emotionally. And touched in a way that makes us start to move in the right direction.

I'm going to watch the original when I get some free time but I was wondering if any of the OGs that don't have any type of bias can tell me what are the major differences between New and Original Roots?

 

[Amajorfucup]

So with that being said, my students really needed this. And I also needed this. After teaching so much of this history and me myself being of African descent, this was an emotional experience for me.

Awesome post bro.. Glad you finally came around as well.

I'm going to watch the original when I get some free time but I was wondering if any of the OGs that don't have any type of bias can tell me what are the major differences between New and Original Roots?

There were significant changes but the overall story remains intact. I havent watched the original in decades but from memory some of distinctions were...
1. More detail about Kunta's life and culture on the Continent
2. More detail and added storyline pertaining to character involvement in the civil war
3. Kunta&Fiddler killed devils
4. Fiddler died old and broken on the plantation in the original
5. Original showed Belle and Kuntas life after Kizzy was taken.. Belle died from broken heart
6. Chicken Georges departure and return differed slightly but the results were the same.. He was gone for 20 years
7. George did leave the family again due to threats from slave owners but he left and later returned for the family, and purchased land in Tenn where they all started a new life...

Those are off the cuff differences i remember... Im sure there are more if i sat and thought tho. This one also added more nuance to white relations among themselves.. the irish in the pecking order, and classism etc...