Underground Railroad is the new Amazon Prime Video adaptation from the bestselling novel of the same name by Colson Whitehead, and follows a young woman as she attempts to escape from a Georgia plantation for the rumoured Underground Railroad.
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Taking to Twitter to discuss the series, viewers were full of praise for the new series, with one writing: "This is quite extraordinary. Beautiful, horrifying and intense. Only seen episode one but it’s gripped me. Such incredible cinematography, music and performances. Wow."
WATCH: Check out the trailer for the new drama here
Another added: "I don't often see film adaptations of books I love and IMO, I seldom see outstanding literature made into outstanding films or series. But, from the first two episodes I've seen, I highly recommend the adaptation of #ColsonWhitehead's #UndergroundRailroad on Amazon Prime."
Will you be watching the new series?
A third person added: "Yho I'm done watching 2 episodes of #UndergroundRailroad. Wanted to binge-watch it, but it's just too heavy to do that. It needs to be processed after every episode. Yho @ThusoMbedu got me in tears, such a talent. @BarryJenkins created a masterpiece here."
Among those to praise the new series was Oprah Winfrey, who posted on Instagram: "I have been watching @theugrailroadtv all week and I have to say it is essential watching. Director @bandrybarry takes the already extraordinary novel by Colson Whitehead and turns it into a multi-part series that will live in your spirit. And @thuso.mbedu gives the performance of a lifetime. Great things are coming for her and everyone will be saying her name after watching her as the superhero that is Cora.
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"My only advice? Pace yourself through the ten episodes. Pause. Go outside. Take a walk. Move around. Rock yourself like I do. Drink some wine like my daughter-girl Sade. Process it. But it’ll be so worth it. Every scene is searingly profound. #TheUndergroundRailroad is an offering to the world and it’s available now on @amazonprimevideo."
The series has been widely praised
The official synopsis reads: "The Underground Railroad chronicles Cora Randall’s desperate bid for freedom in the antebellum South. After escaping a Georgia plantation for the rumoured Underground Railroad, Cora discovers no mere metaphor, but an actual railroad full of engineers and conductors, and a secret network of tracks and tunnels beneath the Southern soil.
"Over the course of her journey, Cora is pursued by Ridgeway, a bounty hunter who is fixated on bringing her back to the plantation she escaped; especially since her mother Mabel is the only one he has never caught. As she travels from state to state, Cora contends with the legacy of the mother that left her behind and her own struggles to realise a life she never thought was possible."
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