There is no denying that this is a tough watch – the brutality of America’s antebellum era plays out without censorship
Is it based on a true story?
No, not exactly, but it is based on real events. The Underground Railroad is adapted from the novel of the same name by Colson Whitehead, that is described as alternative history.
It is inspired by the real events of the Underground Railroad, which was a route that saw anti-slavery activists and former-slaves help get others to safety through a series of safe houses in the 19th century. An estimated 100,000 slaves found their freedom with the help of conductors or guides – while their enslavers were left puzzled by their disappearance.
Despite having the nickname, the “freedom train” it was not a real railway – it found its name because it was likened to a transport network. In this version, however, there is a literal railroad, which runs through America’s Deep South.
What happens in the book?
The Pulitzer-winning and Man Booker-nominated 2016 book tells the story of escaped slave Cora who was born on The Randall plantation in Georgia. Cora joins forces with another slave, Caesar, to hatch a plan to find freedom after witnessing the atrocities imposed on her fellow black people.
Cora encounters all manner of evil as she travels along the railroad from Georgia to Indiana. In South Carolina she finds herself the subject of an experimental program to wipe out the free black population; in Tennessee she is chained to the body of a dead man; and she is followed everywhere by slave catcher Ridgeway.
After failing to capture Cora’s runaway mother Mabel years before, Ridgeway is unforgiving in his hunt for Cora, although he has a smaller role than in the TV show.
What does this critic say?
“There is no denying that this is a tough watch – the brutality of America’s antebellum era plays out without censorship – but Jenkins has tried to tell the true, unabridged story of his ancestors honestly without exploiting their pain.
“America’s history of violence against black people is a fearless topic to broach, especially at a time when racism is such a globally prominent conversation. The Underground Railroad treads the line of fictional entertainment and historical reenactment expertly, without ever feeling forceful.”
Director: Barry Jenkins
He directed: Moonlight and If Beale Street Could Talk,
“I wouldn’t have made it if I didn’t think people were ready for it.” And if they aren’t, “that’s fine too. That’s what’s really beautiful about putting images into the world – when someone’s ready to find it, it will be there”. said Jenkins
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Antebellum Period summary: The Antebellum Period in American history is generally considered to be the period before the Civil War and after the War of 1812, although some historians expand it to all the years from the adoption of the Constitution in 1789 to the beginning of the Civil War. It was characterized by the rise of abolition and the gradual polarization of the country between abolitionists and supporters of slavery. During this same time, the country’s economy began shifting in the north to manufacturing as the Industrial Revolution began, while in the south, a cotton boom made plantations the center of the economy. The annexation of new territory and western expansion saw the reinforcement of American individualism and of Manifest Destiny, the idea that Americans and the institutions of the U.S. are morally superior and Americans are morally obligated to spread these institutions.