Rated: PG

This film, divided up into four episodes, takes us into the ancestry of Samuel L. Jackson, Tina Turner and Don Cheadle, just to name a few. Gates peeled away generations of secrets to uncover some truths that might have been better off buried. While for some, the news of their ancestry is an enlightening experience, for others racial barriers are further blurred.

This series was truly fascinating. It was well organized, had a great deal of research and also provided the viewer with a different look at some of our favorite African American stars. Morgan Freeman's mixed racial background, Tina Turner's educational legacy and Chris Rock's military roots are some very emotional points in the miniseries.

But, it doesn't stop there. Factoids about African American life pre and post Reconstruction are interspersed within the genealogy of these celebrities. Whether via Jim Crow or sharecropping, the abolition of slavery was not the end of oppression. According to Morgan Freeman, "The idea of freedom was much more endurable than the reality of freedom."

African American Lives 2 is both an autobiography for Gates, as well as an anthropological voyage into little known truths. With four episodes to choose from, one can start at the "Road Home" (Episode 1) or skip right to the end where "The Past is Another Country" (Episode 4). And, as each celebrity becomes aware of their past, the viewer also learns about the history of African Americans in this country. This is a definite must-see, whose proceeds go to the Public Broadcasting Network.

This Reviewer's Rating: 4 / 5

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3.25 Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved."