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Special Features
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Each episode unfolds with a stylish flair of mystery and includes moments of drama that are often genuinely moving as these famous faces all but melt when they make their individual discoveries. The journeys take each subject on lengthy field trips. Susan Sarandon makes a jaunt to Italy; Mathew Broderick travels to a World War I cemetery in France and Civil War battlefields in the Deep South; Lisa Kudrow discovers a painful family history in Belarus and Poland; and Spike Lee uncovers roots in the red clay of Georgia. The mini-documentary sagas are juiced with VIP celebrity treatment and ease of access to information that would probably take regular people months to track down. The subjects receive privileged entrée to top experts who have clearly done a lot of legwork in researching old paper records, microfilm, and computer scans. And the drama is often laid on a little thick as key documents are presented with a this-is-your-life flourish at key moments in the middle of historic settings. Invariably there are tears of emotion that the camera grabs onto with a schmaltz that sometimes borders on shameless. Nevertheless, the tears you find welling up at these poignant scenes may well be your own. (As a side note, you'll want to keep your finger ready on the fast-forward: the episodes are heavily padded with "coming up" spoilers and rehashes of what you've already seen on each side of the original commercial breaks.) --Ted Fry
Product Description
As seen on NBC
Stars trace their family roots through history
"Fascinating" --The New York Times
"Brings history alive in a way rarely seen on television … satisfying emotional journeys" --The Philadelphia Inquirer
To know who you are, you have to know where you came from. In this fascinating reality series, seven celebrities share their life-altering discoveries. Working with genealogists, historians, and researchers, they travel the world to uncover the secrets and surprises in their family trees.
Sarah Jessica Parker’s (Sex and the City) search leads back to the Salem witch trials. Dallas Cowboys legend Emmitt Smith follows his slave ancestors to Benin. Lisa Kudrow (Friends) learns the truth of her great-grandmother’s fate in the Holocaust. Tony® winner Matthew Broderick (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Glory) traces his family to battlefields in France and America. Brooke Shields (Suddenly Susan) unearths her royal connections. Oscar® winner Susan Sarandon (Dead Man Walking) explores the racy life of her grandmother. And Emmy® -winning director Spike Lee (Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X) meets a relative he didn’t know he had.
Intriguing, moving, and ultimately uplifting, this series proves that genealogy is more than a pastime. It’s a journey through history that changes everything.
Customer Reviews
WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? plays like a fascinating mystery, as stars travel cross-country and, in some cases, across the globe to learn the stories of their ancestors.
Sarah Jessica Parker, for example, not only discovers that one of her ancestors took part in the California Gold Rush, but that another was accused in, yet survived, the infamous Salem witch trials.
In a later episode, her husband, Matthew Broderick, learns that his grandfather was a WW1 hero and that his great, great grandfather fought at Gettysburg.
Dallas Cowboys' legend Emmitt Smith traces his roots back to the days of slavery, and even journeys to Africa where his family originated.
In what is certainly the most heart-wrenching episode, Lisa Kudrow, who is also one of the series' executive producers, traces her father's family back to Europe where she learns the horrifying facts of how her great grandmother was murdered by the Nazis, but she also meets a distant cousin who managed to escape the Holocaust.
Discoveries made by Brooke Shields, Susan Sarandon and Spike Lee are equally fascinating.
Aside from being entertaining, this documentary series is also a helpful "how to" guide for viewers who might wish to explore their own ancestral roots. The various historians explain how old census records and visits to libraries can serve as an invaluable starting point for a search into one's past.
If the series has a flaw, it's that the individual episodes do not have enough material to fill a one-hour program. This results in a lot of annoying repetition; unnecessary recapping at the start of every segment of material we've already seen.
Hopefully, in future seasons, the producers will shoot more footage, perhaps of the subject interacting with his/her immediate family, or if that proves impractical, maybe the show should be cut down to a half-hour length.
© Michael B. Druxman
So in summary, it gets 2 stars for the few limited genealogical tips it presents but otherwise this show is poorly presented, low on original content and very frustrating to watch if you have any sort of half-decent memory.
Sarah Jessica Parker learns about her connection to the Salem Witch Trials, Emmit Smith learns about his slave ancestors, Lisa Kudrow discovers a relative from the Holocaust, Matthew Broderick has family who served in the Civil War, Susan Sarandon had a relative who "got around", Brooke Shields has royalty in her blood and Spike Lee has an unexpected surprise.
These stories are top-notch. Whenever I think of genealogy, I tend to get bored, but this show will keep you captivated as you discover family answers to the stars.
There's obvious marketing going on as each person uses a certain database to help find their great-grandparents, but it's all worth it whenever they travel to small towns and foriegn countries in search of their heritage.
Who knows, maybe this program will entice you to look up your ancestors.
Whoever said Reality TV was the downfall of our society has not seen Who Do You Think You Are?
This DVD was provided for review, at no cost, by Acorn Media.
IT WAS AS EASY TO FIND MY ANCESTORS AS IT WAS FOR THESE CELEBERTIES. Read more
