In the Heat of the Night (1967) - Southern racism blasted in Jewison's riveting crime drama

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A very "groovy" and "hip" zeitgeist-tasting poster for Norman Jewison's In the Heat of the Night

An important engineer is found slain in a small South state town, and right away homicide investigating expert Virgil Tibbs from an Eastern state is accused. But he'll soon be tasked with collaborating with the local racists.

 

In the Heat of the Night is written by Stirling Silliphant (Over the Top (1987)), adapting the same-titled 1965 novel by John Ball (Judo Boy (1964)), and directed by great Canadian-American filmmaker Norman Jewison (40 Pounds of Trouble (1962)).

It is an electric, powerful picture, - still one of the most stimulating American films of all time. The racism theme is served with aplomb; through the terrific performance of Sidney Poitier (The Jackal (1997)), the audience experiences what it may have been like to be black in the American South, both the belittlement and the menace involved. Rod Steiger (End of Days (1999)) inhabits the local sheriff, who learns something from the outsider during the course of the film, in role-model fashion. All of the local rednecks are portrayed convincingly. The cotton farm scene is especially effective.

In a way the murder plot is 'second fiddle' to the racism theme here. Quincy Jones' (Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2005)) score (abetted with participation from Ray Charles) is a hip and mighty musical pairing that also deserves praise. Haskel Wexler's (Something's Gotta Give (2009)) cinematography is outstanding. SPOILER In the Heat of the Night succeeds in condensing its issue at hand in a meaningful way to reach an optimistically hopeful conclusion; that human meetings may break down hatreds and prejudice.

 

Related post:

 

Norman Jewison: The Hurricane (1999) - Terrific performances in Jewison's long racism drama

 

 

Watch a trailer for the film here

 

Cost: 2 mil. $

Box office: Reportedly 24.3 mil. $ (North American alone)

= Mega-hit (projected return of 17.5 times its cost)

[In the Heat of the Night was released 2 August (USA, Philippines) and runs 110 minutes. Poitier was paid 200k $ and 20 % of the profits for his performance; Steiger 150k $. Shooting took place from September - November 1966 in Illinois, Tennessee and in Los Angeles, California. The film had reportedly racked in 11 mil. $ in North American rentals (the gross minus the exhibitor's cut) by 1971, which would make the 24.3 mil. $ domestic gross realistic. If the international reception was markedly less enthusiastic, - not unlikely due to the film's very American theme of Southern racism, - a very conservatively set 35 mil. $ world gross may be projected. The film was nominated for 7 Oscars, winning 5: For Best Picture, Actor (Steiger), Adapted Screenplay, Editing and Sound. It lost Best Director to Mike Nichols for The Graduate and Sound Effects to The Dirty Dozen. The film also won 2/4 BAFTA nominations, 3/7 Golden Globes and was nominated for a Grammy, among other honors. Poitier returned as Tibbs in the two sequels They Call Me Mister Tibbs (1970) and The Organization (1971). A 1988-95 spin-off series also entitled In the Heat of the Night was also made. Jewison returned with The Thomas Crown Affair (1968). Poitier returned in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967); Steiger in The Girl and the General (1967). In the Heat of the Night is certified fresh at 96 % with an 8.40/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

 

What do you think of In the Heat of the Night? 

Edge of the City (1957) - Poitier gleams in Ritt's idealistic debut

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The firetruck red of this poster for Martin Ritt's Edge of the City indicates the socialist politics it promotes

A young man arrives to the New York Harbor without any inclination to share his name or his background but eager to find employment. He finds a good friend but also trouble with a corrupt foreman.

Edge of the City is the debut movie for Martin Ritt (Hud (1963)), an attempt at social realism that lifts relevant issues such as racism and exploitation of manual laborers. It was written by Robert Alan Aurthur (The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse (1951-55)), based on his last hour-long episode on the said show titled A Man Is Ten Feet Tall (1955).
Edge of the City is a film with a clear, liberal authorship, - SPOILER the mysterious hero (John Cassavetes (The Virginian (1966), TV-series)) turns out to be a deserter! -  but it undeniably seems a bit superficial.
Sidney Poitier (Duel at Diablo (1966)) is wonderful as the film's second hero, a rather flawless character, obviously an inspirational, idealized American negro character intentionally written to collide head-on with the racist stereotypes often found in American films at the time. Additionally, Ruby Dee (Touched by An Angel (1999), TV-series)) is strong as his wife; Cassavetes is good, and so is Kathleen Maguire (Flipper (1963)) as the blond, (whom Cassavetes doesn't exactly fall for, - in fact, the film contains an innuendo of homosexuality on the character's part, which was also very uncommon at the time, and which the MPPCA noted but allowed since it is so subtle that most probably misses it), and Jack Warden (The Cosmic Voice (1986)) as the villainous foreman. Inevitably, the film is reminiscent of Elia Kazan's masterpiece On the Waterfront (1954), whose heights it doesn't reach, but it is still a solid, incensed crime drama.

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 493k $
Box office: Reportedly 760k $
= Big flop
[Edge of the City premiered 4 January and runs 85 minutes. Financing studio MGM figured they couldn't play the film in the segregated South and budgeted the film lowly, giving black-listed Ritt only 10k $ and 15k$ for Poitier. Cassavetes' paycheck is not known. Shooting took place in New York, including in Harlem and at a Manhattan railroad yard. The release was delayed, because the studio was uneasy with the film's controversial theme of interracial brotherhood, but following a successful screening, it was released and met with praise by the NAACP, Urban League and the American Jewish Committee, but also with boycots in the South and small audiences. According to MGM, the film made 360k $ (47.4 % of the total gross) in North America and incurred a 125k $ loss, despite fine reviews. The film was nominated for 2 BAFTAs, - one for 'Best Film from Any Source' and one for Best Foreign Actor (Poitier). 1,848 IMDb users have given Edge of the City a 7.2/10 average rating.]

What do you think of Edge of the City?