VHS Movie Reviews for In the Heat of the Night [VHS]

In the Heat of the Night [VHS]

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VHS Movie Reviews of In the Heat of the Night [VHS]

Movie Review: The Original "In The Heat Of The Night"
Summary: 5 Stars

1967's "In the Heat of the Night" is almost a time capsule of an earlier age. The long-running TV series of the same name has probably blurred memories of this classic, while the raw racial tensions depicted in the movie may have lost some of their edge in the intervening 40 years. However, the artistry of this Academy Award-winning movie remains vivid and intact.

In the middle of a hot summer night in the small Southern town of Sparta, Mississippi, a prominent white industrialist is found robbed and murdered in the streets. One of the town constables arrests a black man at the train depot, who seems to have more money than he should. Only at the jail, under questioning by the town sheriff (in an Academy Award-winning performanc by Rod Stieger), is it revealed that the black man is a homicide detective from Philadelphia named Virgil Tibbs (played by Sidney Poitier).

Thus begins an uneasy alliance between the white sheriff and the black detective, in a race to find the real killer before tensions in the town explode into something uglier. Along the way, the two will be forced to face their own and each other's racial prejudices. Poitier's street-savy and professional cop is quick to anger at any affront to his dignity, an attitude not much seen in Sparta. Stieger's redneck sheriff must walk a delicate line between his slowly increasing admiration for Tibb's skills and the discontent his presence in the case is causing among the townspeople. The case itself twists, turns, and doubles back on itself to a tense and surprising conclusion. In the process, the white sheriff and the black detective arrive at a subtle but touching mutual respect that is the real payoff of the movie.

The movie is blessed with a superb supporting cast, especially Warren Oates as a troubled town constable and Lee Grant as the wife of the murdered industrialist. The cinematography is unforgettable; the viewer can almost feel the stifling heat and humidity of Sparta. The detail, from the small diner with pies under glass to the sweat-stained shirt and tie and polite drawl of the town mayor, is spot-on.

This movie is very highly recommended as a classic movie experience that has lost none of its bite and its suspense over the years.

Movie Review: Great movie....
Summary: 5 Stars

Sidney Poitier made this movie what it was. Great mystery with a few turns that keep you guessing.

Movie Review: Great Murder Mystery with race overtones
Summary: 5 Stars

If you haven't seen this Academy Award winning movie from 1967, you are missing one of the best dramas regarding race relations and murder ever
filmed. It stars Sydney Poitier and Rod Steiger. Poitier is a black
northern policeman on vacation in the south, while Steiger is a police
chief in Mississippi. When an important rich white man is murdered,
Poitier is picked up at the train station because he is black and not
a known resident. What ensues is suspenseful, funny at times, and has
many twists and turns to keep the viewer guessing.

Movie Review: In the Heat of the Night
Summary: 4 Stars

This is a great movie, a classic for the ages. It has a wonderful story, black and white relations in the South, a murder, several suspects: with 2 fantastic actors playing off each other. In spite of the many reruns on TV, never dull my interest and enchantment with this film.