America to Me: Season 1

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Universal acclaim based on 9 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 48 Ratings

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5.6

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5.6	User Score Mixed or average reviews based on 48 Ratings

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America To Me: Nobody Can Hold You Down

Now Playing: America To Me: Nobody Can Hold You Down

Season Details & Credits

Starz | Season Premiere Date: August 26, 2018

Summary: The 10-part documentary series from Steve James takes a year-long look at Chicago's Oak Park and River Forest High School as students and staff deal with a variety of issues, including race, at one of the most diverse suburban public high schools in the U.S.

Genre(s): Reality, News/Documentary, Documentary, Educational

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Season 1 Episodes

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

IndieWire Ben Travers

Jul 9, 2018

His empathetic portraits of teenage students and their earnest educators creates an affecting, insightful, and vital piece of cultural commentary. Read full review

100

Melanie McFarland

Aug 27, 2018

What may be one of the most important shows to debut this year, do not miss a moment of this 10-part documentary series. ... A compelling, potent education. Read full review

100

Dan Fienberg

Jul 9, 2018

The show doesn't pretend teens today are growing up without full awareness of what reality TV looks like, and America to Me doesn't pretend not to be reality TV in its own way. It's reality TV in the best sense of the term, and I suspect that America to Me will end up being one of the year's best shows of any kind. Read full review

100

Caroline Framke

Aug 17, 2018

America to Me succeeds by taking a quieter, slyly bruising approach in order to match the timbre of its fraught subject material, portraying how intersections of race, class and privilege become grueling everyday realities. It’s a slower burn, but it proves no less searing. Read full review

100

James Poniewozik

Aug 24, 2018

Expansive, nuanced documentary. ... It’s an invaluable look at where inequity begins, as well as the difficulty of getting to the place where it ends. Read full review

Sophie Gilbert

Sep 4, 2018

Profound and thoughtful. ... The series takes the viewer on an insightful, engaging, and maddening trip back to school, which is enabled by the extraordinary access James and his segment directors were given to classrooms, board meetings, and people’s homes. Read full review

Brian Lowry

Aug 24, 2018

America to Me features a winning mix of kids, running the gamut of emotions and experiences that high school entails. Read full review

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User Reviews

coltivator

Aug 28, 2018

Provides an insightful look into something so often depicted exclusively for exploitation, laughs, or entertainment: the lives of high schoolers. The series is the best depiction I have ever seen of what it actually looks and feels like to be in high school, doing what Eighth Grade did forProvides an insightful look into something so often depicted exclusively for exploitation, laughs, or entertainment: the lives of high schoolers. The series is the best depiction I have ever seen of what it actually looks and feels like to be in high school, doing what Eighth Grade did for the middle school experience except with people's real lives. You get drawn into the kids lives and hooked on seeing how their choir audition is going to go or what's gonna happen at homecoming or are they going to pass this test or are they going to make weight for wrestling, etc. While simultaneously the series's portrayal of the complex inner lives of students who so often get glossed over in media representations is able to give a macroscopic portrait of the state of education in America specifically regarding what it is like to be a non-white student in a system built for white students, and it does so with absolute deft and never feeling heavy handed. Total must watch for any students, parents, teachers, coaches, administrators, and anyone around the world of education.… Expand

9 of 17 users found this helpful98

mdarcy25

Jan 20, 2019

Tests are biased. Tests are created by White males in charge who want everyone to think that they determine what smart and dumb is. Then you have a whole bunch of conformist ignorant toadies who listen and follow. Don't waste your time studying for these stupid tests. ELIMINATE standardizedTests are biased. Tests are created by White males in charge who want everyone to think that they determine what smart and dumb is. Then you have a whole bunch of conformist ignorant toadies who listen and follow. Don't waste your time studying for these stupid tests. ELIMINATE standardized tests. They are dumb and only for dumb greedy dumb people.… Expand

0 of 4 users found this helpful04

minimus

Jun 17, 2019

Best documentary series I have seen in a long time. Each student’s story is compelling and touching, as is the story of the high school community itself. Although the “age of television” may be passing its prime, this series ranks up there with the best TV of the last decade.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

dandollar

Oct 10, 2018

Looks like this show has baited out all the racists. I'm on the 8th episode (out of 10 I believe). It's a great documentary that really highlights not only the racial divide still incredibly prevalent in schools, but also just what it's like to come of age as a millennial in this era. It'sLooks like this show has baited out all the racists. I'm on the 8th episode (out of 10 I believe). It's a great documentary that really highlights not only the racial divide still incredibly prevalent in schools, but also just what it's like to come of age as a millennial in this era. It's overall not quite as gripping as the desperate inner city struggle that Hoop Dreams presented (nor should anyone expect it to be, it's about high school in a near middle-income suburb), but I'm still loving it. Today's kids are amazing.… Expand

2 of 5 users found this helpful23

DukeCumberjack

Aug 27, 2018

After the first two episodes it's pretty good but not as good as I had hoped after reading the reviews. It's Steve James so you can expect quality film-making, but be prepared for an overbearing and somewhat self-serving racial theme. Those looking for a banger like Hoop Dreams will get someAfter the first two episodes it's pretty good but not as good as I had hoped after reading the reviews. It's Steve James so you can expect quality film-making, but be prepared for an overbearing and somewhat self-serving racial theme. Those looking for a banger like Hoop Dreams will get some compelling stories, however you may feel smothered by an incredibly pessimistic and honestly anti-progressive message.

I may be naive, but focusing incessantly on what divides us is not a trend in the right direction. The addiction to racial differences I see as an American really bums me out sometimes. It is absolutely overwhelming on any side of the political spectrum. I wish film and television would present stories such as these differently as to let the next generation know they are more than just a color.

To those giving this series a zero: I empathize with (some of) your criticisms but please, don't trash something hundreds of people worked incredibly hard on because you can't see passed a political message. I am going to keep watching because I respect Steve James and think I could learn something from these kids. I hope you do too.… Expand

8 of 19 users found this helpful811

John12345678910

Oct 9, 2018

When we discuss class & related topics such as affirmative action we are really talking about intelligence. So let's discuss the elephant in the room, IQ. Consider Asians... Asians must score 450 points higher than African Americans & Hispanics//Latinos on most college entranceWhen we discuss class & related topics such as affirmative action we are really talking about intelligence. So let's discuss the elephant in the room, IQ. Consider Asians... Asians must score 450 points higher than African Americans & Hispanics//Latinos on most college entrance exams-especially ivy league. Asian work ethic is extremely high. In fact, Asians rank the highest on the world IQ map, yet we give their seats away to students with a faction of their IQ & work ethic. Then we give these students a pass into college & graduate. Bottom line, intelligence & work ethic are the great dividers, not race & certainly not opportunity. Study harder! Study longer.… Expand

6 of 28 users found this helpful622

Seasons & Episodes

96

Series Overview
Season 1

96
- Season 1 Overview
  Air Date: August 26, 2018
- No episode information is currently available for this season