Black Roots

Sep 24 1970 N/A 1h 3m
Documentary

Black Roots is the fourth feature-length film produced and directed by American independent filmmaker Lionel Rogosin. The film gathers a number of African American folk and blues musicians in a room, where they share stories and songs about the black experience in America.

Plot

Rogosin took the fight for equality to his homeland with his astonishing and powerful fourth feature Black Roots. The film, which is ripe for rediscovery, featured an extraordinary cast, including Reverend Frederick Douglass Kirkpatrick; attorney and feminist activist Florynce ""Flo"" Kennedy; and musicians Jim Collier, Wende Smith, Larry Johnson and Reverend Gary Davis. All tell stories of heartbreak and despair while their songs blow the roof off the rafters. In an extension of the famed shebeen scenes in Come Back, Africa, the participants in Black Roots spoke openly about politics and race in a way that is still rarely seen on screen. In 1970, it was a radical and daring move by a great director. A deeply humanist film, Black Roots combines tales of oppression with hauntingly beautiful images of the faces of black men, women and children.

Written by

N/A

Directed by

Lionel Rogosin

Cast

Jim Collier, Gary Davis, Larry Johnson

Crew

View crew

Production Countries

Germany, Sweden, United States of America

Production Companies

Rogosin Films, Sveriges Radio-TV, NDR

Languages

English

Awards

N/A

Scores
# of Votes
124
Average Rating
7 out of 10
Metascore
NA
Popularity
NA