Norman Jewison’s, In the Heat of the Night, a captivating murder mystery and drama set in the deep South enhances our understanding of past events by incorporating ideas of explicit racism through the contrasting characters Virgil Tibbs, the protagonist, and Bill Gillespie, the antagonist.
This intriguing film follows Tibbs (Sidney Poitier), an African American Philadelphia detective, who visits his mother in the South and finds himself at the train station waiting to go back home. This well-dressed and put together black man is arrested by Sam Wood (Warren Oates) on the assumption that he committed the murder of a wealthy white man, Mr. Colbert. But once Tibbs is acquitted, he partners up with the local police officers of Sparta, Mississippi to investigate and solve the crime. However, catching the real killer is difficult as Tibbs is constantly being subjected to offensive and degrading words and actions. Like other movies that deal with blatant racism and unjustified violence, In the Heat of the Night examines how whites have treated blacks in the United States for decades, particularly during the time period when this movie was filmed.
Detective Vigil Tibbs, a well-rounded and static character, delivers and elegant and graceful performance. As an audience, we are first introduced to him at the train station where he sits silently on a bench waiting for the train. He appears to be quiet and not looking for trouble while Wood arrests him. Tibbs’ intellegence, strength and phenomenal skills makes him an undeniably remarkable character who proves that assuming and judging people is an absurd habit. Chief Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger), a dynamic character, is an arrogant, conceited and judgemental person who is very dismissive towards Virgil. In the beginning of this film, Gillespie is a prejudiced man and doesn’t believe a word of what Tibbs says. Although, we later see that he is capable of growth and warms up to Tibbs. In my opinion, the first time we see this is when Gillespie asks Tibbs for help to solve the crime and refers to him as “officer” rather than “boy”. Officer Sam Wood, however, is a static character who really doesn’t change his views on blacks drastically. He is openly racist towards Virgil Tibbs as he frequently talks down to him, calling him “boy”. Combined, these outstanding performances by Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger and Warren Oates, make for a noteworthy and classic film that depicts the racism and biases in the 60s and 70s.
This movie uses a linear narrative as it followed Tibbs’ goal of finding out who killed Mr. Colbert while defying and overcoming the racist views of the people of this town. For instance, when examining Mr. Colbert’s dead body, the white men at the morgue disrespect Virgil: they refuse to shake his hand, stare at him with disgust and question his knowledge. Furthermore, as the story evolves Tibbs along with Gillespie and Wood, continue to uncover evidence that leads them to different suspects until they find who the true killer is, following a linear structure.
Although the 60s was a strong year for a variety of films, I believe that this was one of the best. In the Heat of the Night won numerous awards for not only the characters acting ability but also for Best Picture, Best Sound and Best Screenplay. Canadian film director, Norman Jewison, did a superb job at directing this movie with some of the most intense human versus human conflicts between Tibbs, Wood and Gillespie that dealt with important issues that were relevant at that time. Moreover, the lighting in this film is very symbolic and effective. The mise-en-scene of the film begins with complete darkness continues with dim lightning throughout the movie creating a conflict establisher. The ending scene, however, is bright and sunny as Gillespie brings Tibbs to the train station. This, to me, symbolizes the triumph that Tibbs faces with the case as well as the prejudices of Gillespie and the other white officers. Similar to the lighting, music plays a vital role and is used purposely in this film. For instance, the catchy and somewhat creepy country song “Foul Owl on the Prowl”, by The Little Willies, is played for the first time in Ralph Henshaw’s diner. This song provides insight and foreshadows future events as he awkwardly dances along to the song.
This movie took place during a time when racism and segregation in the United States was at it speak. Sit-ins, freedom rides, the March on Washington and the March on Montgomery were all events that occurred during the Civil Rights Movement where people advocated and fought for equality rights and freedoms. In the Heat of the Night enables viewers to ask difficult questions regarding the state of the country at a pivotal moment in American history. Poitier gave one of the most significant depictions in movie history as he declared “They call me Mr. Tibbs!”, to Gillespie when he questions Tibbs’ intelligence. This phrase turned into one of the most famous quotes from a film because Virgil fought back against the prejudicial ideals that existed during this time. Virgil’s confidence and determination throughout the movie make for an accurate representation of how activists like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr acted during the Civil Rights Movement to better the lives of future African Americans citizens in the United States. I rated this film 5 stars due to the precise depiction of events that occurred around this time period.
All in all, this movie effectively incorporated all elements of a film, like costumes, music, cinematography and much more, to create a realistic movie with a powerful message. In the Heat of the Night enhanced my understanding of historical events as it accurately portrayed how African Americans were treated and how they fought back against racism and segregation. I recommend this movie to anyone because it paints a true picture of historical events as it depicts the conflicts between opposing sides reflecting American history. Norman Jewison successfully directed a film about the ideas of racism at a time of civil unease.