In the Heat of the Night: Film Review
Black Detective Virgil Tibbs's triumph over Racial Prejudices
Jan 25, 2009
In the Heat of the Night is based on a work of detective fiction, a murder mystery by John Ball. But the murder only sets the stage in the 1967 film directed by Norman Jewison. Words, gestures, anger and silence all combine to capture the intensity of racial prejudices in the American Deep South.
The film begins in the dark, as Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) steps off a train at the fictional town of Sparta in Mississippi. That very night a local police officer discovers the body of a prominent businessman lying on a street. Tibbs, who is African-American, is found at the station waiting room, and accused of murder. But the racist sheriff Gillespie (Rod Steiger) gets a rude shock, when Tibbs reveals that he is a homicide detective with the Philadelphia police.
They call me Mister Tibbs
Gillespie treats Tibbs with contempt and disbelief. But he is forced to use Tibbs’ help, on the recommendation of the latter’s superior from Philadelphia. Gillespie still keeps Tibbs at arm's length, and stymies Tibbs’ investigations. He makes rushed arrests twice, only to be proved wrong.
Poitier as Tibbs has dignity written all over him, and maintains an iron discipline when confronted with insult and innuendo. It is the same dignity that brings the simmering anger out in the open when he retorts “ They call me Mister Tibbs.” They Call Me Mister Tibbs was also the title of the 1970 sequel, again starring Poitier
Poitier and the slap
Tibbs, along with Gillespie goes to meet Endicott, a cotton planter who is a business rival of the dead businessman. Endicott slaps Tibbs, only to be slapped back immediately. Poitier’s action has the energy of spontaneity, which makes the slap resonate all the more. It was a slap that redefined Hollywood conventions, and coincided with a time when the militant Black Power movement was gaining ground.
Steiger: Contempt turns to respect
As the film progresses, Gillespie develops a grudging respect for Tibbs, which slowly overrides his racial prejudices. It is a radical step in a racist small town when Gillespie utters “I don’t know,” in response to Endicott’s question on what he would do about Tibbs. The town mayor remarks to Gillespie that the previous police chief would have shot Tibbs and claimed self-defense.
It is not surprising that the film was mostly shot in Sparta in Southern Illinois. Poitier was unwilling to go south of the Mason-Dixon line.
In the Heat of the Night: Oscar honors
The film won five Oscars, including best film and best actor for Rod Steiger. In the Heat of the Night scored at the Academy Awards over another Poitier-starrer that broke conventions, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.
The Oscar honors came on April 10, 1968, nearly a week after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4.
