Roots 6 Video Box Set

It's no wonder this show was the most watched in history. I have to say I'm not American, therefore the history itself isn't my history. Still, I felt totally touched by the series, and had to make an effort after each episode not to watch the next inmediately and go to bed. In my opinion, this is not a story for blacks, or Americans. This is a great story -whether you want to watch is as history or fiction, if makes you feel better somehow- that everyone will enjoy.

Anyway, most likely you already know what roots it's about. If you don't, well, it's the story of seven generations of a black family, from the capture in Africa of a free black (Kunta Kinte) to become a slave, to the writer of the book (Alex Haley) himself.

Actually note that the DVDs tell the story from Kunta Kinte until the generation where they become free, then explains in the final minutes happened to the rest. The story is told complete in Roots: The Next Generations, which isn't available on DVD yet.

I will comment on the DVD now. The box comes with three double sided DVDs (which I don't like, because I think they are more prone to be damaged). Total running time is 573 minutes. Region is 1. The primary track (English) is closed captioned, and there are subtitles in English, Spanish and French. Note that the additional commentary is not subtitled, so if you are impaired you will miss it.
Sound is in mono both in the English and the Spanish tracks (dolby digital, though) and is very decent.
Video is 4:3, and it's quite clean. It's interlaced (if you care about this because you use your PC to watch DVDs).
As for the box itself, it's convinient and doesn't take a lot of shelf space, which I appreciate very much.
There are no booklets included.


200yrs,12yrs,2yrs,8nites= Greatest TV Mini-Series now on DVD   August 2, 2003
forrie (Nashua, NH United States)
45 out of 46 found this review helpful

200 years to unfold, 12 years of research to discover, 2 years to create, 8 nights to make television history.

Alex Haley's "ROOTS" a Pultizer Prize Winning Book adapated Srceen Play dominated TV and America in 1977. Winner of 9 Emmy Awards, the George Foster Peabody Award, the Television Critics Circle Awards and the Golden Globe Award. This was a mini-series which Ameica watched and it change us forever.

Alex Haley spent 12 years retracing and recreating his family tree. "ROOTS" was the result of this research and it tells an incredible story of one mans family and American slavery.

This story is a must viewing!! A very enlightening story of slavery and America.

Warner Brothers did a great job transferring this classic series to DVD. This Standard Format 3 DVD set (double sided) gives us the complete 'ROOTS" experience (over 570 minutes)to view over and over. The extras include; Complete Commentary by Producer David L. Wolper and numerous series stars, Behind the Scenes documentary, Video High lights, The ROOTS Family Tree and a documentary Remembering ROOTS (with most of the stars in the series in reflection).

Summary; His name was Kunta Kinte. Kidnapped from Africa and enslaved in America in 1767. The journey began to keep his heritage and reclaim freedom. This process covered generations and through word of mouth survive until it reached a young boy growing up in Tennessee. His name was Alex Haley and he proclaimed Kunta Kinte's name to the world.

Don't miss this outstanding must see family experience. Enjoy.


Roots is for everyone.   March 15, 2002
25 out of 28 found this review helpful

Watching 'Roots' as a adult 25 years after its release in 1977 is bittersweet. There are scenes that I could recall very easily, like when Kunta Kinte was named in the moonlight, or when Kizzy spit in Missy Anne's water. But the rest of the 6 episodes were so brand new and fresh. It was a great feast for the eyes, ears and heart. I was overwhelmed.

As a 7 year old little girl I watched with great pride. As an adult woman I watch with a renewed sense of how far we have come as a nation. I am in awe of the legacy Alex Haley has presented. A legacy that represents African people in the Western Hemisphere disconnected from our Motherland...Africa.

I can't wait for ...The Next Generation to be available on DVD.

This is a must for a lover of history...black, white, brown, yellow and everyone in between


At a Loss for Words to describe this beautiful Art   September 30, 2000
Amber McCann (Modesto, CA)
24 out of 30 found this review helpful

Roots...I first was introduced to the miniseries in the 8th grade. I was instantly hit by it, in a good way. I only saw 45 minutes of the almost 7-8 hour movie, I fell in love with it. Just recently, a Roots Marathon came on the television and I watched the entire thing. From Kunte Kinte to Chicken George and his long-lineage of friends and family finally be freed from their "taxes" and have their land to themselves. My eyes were filled with tears from the moment the movie began and until the movie ended. Roots is a spectacular movie. The acting is wonderful. However the powerful moments comes in personal introspection. When one realizes how dehumanizing and how completely wrong, for lack of better word, it is to subject any person to slavery based on some outer physical characteristic...it is absurd. My heart still is reaching out to all the African-Americans who endured slavery and the post-effects of slavery continuing up to this day. Roots allows us to see the pitfalls of the "land of the free...all men are created equal"...how dare the United States make that assumption. Roots shows us that we still have a long way to go before all men are created equal. This is the best miniseries and all-time classics everyone should own.


roots   January 31, 2002
M. Medrano (Leesburg, FL United States)
24 out of 30 found this review helpful

I had been anxiously waiting for the DVD release of this wonderful Television Miniseries since I started collecting DVDs.
Well, it finally happened and looked forward to seeing once again after 25 years one of the top made for television films made.
As I started to watch Disc 1, I noticed that the English subtitles would randomly appear and disappear as the movie progressed. Needless to say, this put a dent on my viewing so I decided to restart the movie again, as I could NOT get rid of the subtitles, either through the remote control or DVD "set-up" menu settings. I repeated this several times but the subtitles kept popping up. At this point my desire to keep watching rapidly declined. I tried it on another player, and yes, same problem, with the subtitles appearing and disappearing at the same points on both machines. I own over 100 DVDs and had never seen this problem before, so I decided to exchange it for another one.
Well, guess what? Same exact problem with the replacement disc! I don't know the technical reason why it happens, and I know it's not the players' problem, so at this point I will be returning the DVD for a refund as this is obviously a pressing problem. Warner Video needs to look into it, and rectify the situation.
Other than that, I look forward to one day actually watching "Roots" in it's entirety, at which time I will be happy to let you know my overall opinion of the DVD.