In the Heat of the Night

Pros: Rod Steiger and Sidney Poitier's acting
Cons: murder storyline isn't all that great, DVD commentary could be better

It’s hard to believe that less than forty years ago conditions like these still existed in the United States. Although racism still exists in many (mostly subtle) forms, seeing what is immediately assumed about a black stranger in a town’s train ...

Pros: Steiger, Poitier, Direction, Supporting Cast
Cons: Rod Steiger will be missed! Rest in peace.

“Virgil - that’s a funny name for a nigra boy from Philadelphia. What do they call you up there?” Police Chief Gillespie

“They call me MR. TIBBS!” Detective Virgil Tibbs

Actor Rod Steiger passed away yesterday, July 9, 2002...

Pros: .
Cons: .

In The Heat Of The Night opens on a scene that puts you on edge as no background music is employed and so you can hear every background sound. This makes everything tenser because you find yourself fully absorbed in the film, and the silence manages to ...

Pros: Great acting, Moments of character, Moments of plot
Cons: Thematically repetitive, Light on DVD bonus features

One of the nice things about investigating the classics of American Cinema is that I am finally witnessing some of the great actors and actresses of American Cinema. To wit, last night when I sat up and watched "In The Heat Of The Night," it was the ...

Pros: Stands the test of time.
Cons: None

It’s hard to believe that it was 40 years ago that a movie about racism became the best picture at the Oscars. Even harder to believe is that the same film holds as much relevance today as when it was originally released, that it holds the same impact. ...

Pros: cast, story, suspense, soundtrack
Cons: reverse racism, manufactured tension

"In the Heat of the Night" is a detective story that takes place in rural Mississippi. A wealthy businessman has been killed. An odd couple is on the case: a black detective visiting from Philadelphia (Sidney Poitier) and the local redneck...

Pros: Poitier, message, well-directed
Cons: confusing ending

You'd have to feel sorry for Sidney Poitier in 1967. He'd delivered two excellent performances in this movie and "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner," and was virtually ignored for both. Now, sure, he'd already won his Oscar a few years ago, but his 1967...

Pros: Steiger, Poitier are united by frustration
Cons: Few and far between

This is a movie about a town, not a murder, not even really about the officers who solve the murder. Its character sketches provide a masterful cross-section of life in the rural South circa 1967, even if nearly all the characters react to Sidney...

Pros: Tense drama, top-notch acting
Cons: Somewhat dated

I've structured my movie-viewing around one indisputable fact -- any film that inspires a Carrol O'Conner series can't be half bad. In the Heat of the Night, spun off into an O'Conner series a good 20 years after its theatrical release, one of the first...

Pros: Everything
Cons: Nothing

Some films are good. Some are classic. "In the Heat of the Night" is by far... a classic.

On a fateful night in Sparta, Mississippi, a man named Colbert is murdered, and it's up to the town's new police chief Bill Gillespie to solve the...

Pros: The acting is very realistic and honest.
Cons: There isn't enough time to go even deeper where the emotions play, but still it is a wonderful movie!

I have been a fan of In The Heat of The Night for a long time.
The issues that they bring forth are incredibly close to the
heart! This one chooses Racism as a topic which for me is a
very important topic! Perhaps more movies like this...

Pros: Great drama and quite realistic handling of a touchy subject
Cons: There are no cons except one should remember it is just a movie.

The movie is much better than the series. The movie was actually made during the racial civil rights era. In the sixties. A movie far ahead of the times, because the people back then still thought a lot like the people in the movie. This movie could...

Pros: Stieger, Poitier, and supporting cast are great. Fantastic at creating a realistic southern atmosphere.
Cons: None

This is really the story of two bigoted men, one educated and one not, who are finally able to overcome their prejudices enough to accord some respect to each other. The murder mystery merely provides the vehicle by which this happens.

The creation of the atmosphere is among the best I've even seen in a movie. The movie is called In the Heat of the Night for good reason. You can almost feel the damp hot night air. And while Poitier is definitely out of place among all of the white southern rednecks, he is almost equally out of place with the blacks locals in the movie. Poitier is the only educated, big city person in the movie, with the possible exception of Lee Grant. Even Endicott has an uneducated colonial feel to him. Kind of reminds me of Strom Thurmond and Jesse Helms. This is a movie you don't want to miss if you want to experience the flavor of George Wallace's south.