Roots

The epic story about Kunta Kinte; an African civillian kidnapped and shipped to America in 1767 to become a slave. His story is passed down through the family until it reaches a young boy in Tenessee; Alex Haley, and so comes to light the story of generations of love, tears, pain, strife, sacrifice and happiness, shared through this critically acclaimed series.

• The Complete Roots Collection: Original Series 30th Anniversary Edition / Roots The Gift TV Special / The Next Generation (Exclusive to Amazon.co.uk) | DVD | (29/10/2007 from £16.69   |  Saving you £45.30 (271.42%)   |  RRP £61.99

  His name was Kunta Kinte. Kidnapped from Africa enslaved in America in 1767 he refused to accept his slave name Toby. Heirs kept his heroic defiance alive passing on his tale across generations until it reached a young boy growing up in Tennessee. His name was Alex Haley. Through the lineage of one family Haley and his Pulitzer Prize - winning Roots told a story for all America and the world. Seen by 130 million viewers during its premiere telecast and the winner of dozens of awards the David L. Wolper production remains an engrossing entertainment 30 years later. Embark on an unforgettable DVD journey.

• Roots : The Original Series - 30th Anniversary 4-Disc Box Set | DVD | (17/04/2019 from £11.98   |  Saving you £19.01 (158.68%)   |  RRP £30.99

  1750: The Gambia West Africa. A new Mandinka warrior is born to Binta and Omoro called Kunta Kinte. His father turns the young baby's face to the heavens and whispers ""Behold - the only thing greater than yourself"". So begins the most critically and popularly acclaimed television drama of our time telling the struggle against the suffering slavery and discrimination endured by generations of black people as seen through the eyes of Kunta Kinte and his descendants...

• Roots - Original Series - 25th Anniversary Edition [1977] | DVD | (23/12/2002 from £13.66   |  Saving you £7.33 (53.66%)   |  RRP £20.99

  Based on Alex Haley's bestseller, the 1977 TV mini-series Roots told the harrowing story of one man's ancestors, commencing with African warrior Kunta Kinte, captured, transported to America, stripped of his dignity, his rights, and even his name. He tries but fails to escape before accepting he can never return to Africa. He marries and bears a daughter, Kizzy, who is callously sold, then raped by her new "master". However, her son, Chicken George, a resourceful dab hand with gamecocks, lives long enough to see his own children attain a liberty of sorts following the Civil War. Roots is told in the same, accessible televisual language as The Waltons or Bonanza, yet it is never bland or evasive. It leaves no doubt as to the torment and abuse suffered by blacks, and although the series' conclusion is fictionally satisfying, for many of the black characters their only hope lies in generations yet unborn. It is sturdy enough drama but its greatest, most revolutionary effects were social. It persuaded American audiences to regard their history from a black perspective, and to see how--against odds far more desperate than those the pilgrims faced--Africans laid claim to their status as free African-Americans. Roots was massively popular, triggering a craze for genealogy and paving the way for series like 1979's Holocaust, which similarly raised the public's awareness of the slaughter of the Jews under Hitler. Most importantly, Roots changed forever the way black people were depicted on American TV. On the DVD: Roots is presented in 1:33:1 format and is visually extremely well-preserved. Extra features include a "Roots Family Tree", a copious, informative audio commentary featuring members of cast and crew, and a documentary, "Remembering Roots". Although this consists only of interviews, these convey the extraordinary emotional grip this project had on those who took part in it.--David Stubbs

• Roots - The Next Generation | DVD | (29/10/2007 from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  This is the sequel to the highly successful television series Roots and continues the story of Alex Haley's family line from the Post American Civil War era to Alex Haley's geneological search to discover his roots.