In the Heat of the Night (film)
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In the Heat of the Night | |
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original movie poster |
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Directed by | Norman Jewison |
Produced by | Walter Mirisch |
Written by | John Ball (novel) Stirling Silliphant (screenplay) |
Starring | Sidney Poitier Rod Steiger Lee Grant |
Music by | Quincy Jones |
Cinematography | Haskell Wexler |
Editing by | Hal Ashby |
Distributed by | United Artists |
Release date(s) | August 2, 1967 |
Running time | 109 min. |
Language | English |
Followed by | They Call Me MISTER Tibbs! |
IMDb profile |
In the Heat of the Night is a 1967 film, based on the John Ball novel published in 1965 of the same name, which tells the story of a Northern Black police detective who becomes involved in a murder investigation in a racist small town in Mississippi.
In 2002 the United States Library of Congress deemed the original film "culturally significant" and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry. The quote, "They call me Mister Tibbs!", was listed as #16 on the American Film Institute's AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes, a list of top movie quotes.
The movie later became the basis of a television series entitled In the Heat of the Night, starring Carroll O'Connor, Howard Rollins, Alan Autry, David Hart, Anne-Marie Johnson and Hugh O'Connor.
Part of the movie was filmed in Sparta, Illinois, where many of the film's landmarks can still be seen.
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[edit] Synopsis
When a wealthy man planning to build a factory in Sparta, Mississippi, is murdered, Police Chief Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger) is pressured to find his killer quickly. Northerner Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier), passing through, is picked up at the train station with a substantial amount of money in his wallet. Gillespie jumps to the conclusion he has his (African-American) man, but is embarrassed to learn that Tibbs is a respected Philadelphia homicide detective who had been visiting his mother. After this racist treatment, Tibbs wants nothing more than to leave as quickly as possible, but the victim's widow (Lee Grant) is impressed by the detective's expertise and threatens to stop construction on the much-needed factory unless he leads the investigation. Gillespie then talks Tibbs' captain into lending his services.
Despite the rocky start to their relationship, they come to respect each other as they are forced to work together to solve the crime.
[edit] Primary cast
- Sidney Poitier : Detective Virgil Tibbs
- Rod Steiger : Police Chief Bill Gillespie
- Warren Oates : Officer Sam Wood
- Lee Grant : Mrs. Leslie Colbert
- Larry Gates : Eric Endicott
- James Patterson : Purdy
- William Schallert : Mayor Webb Schubert
- Beah Richards : Mama Caleba (aka Mrs. Bellamy)
- Peter Whitney : Officer George Courtney
- Kermit Murdock : H.E. Henderson (banker)
- Larry D. Mann : Watkins
- Quentin Dean : Delores Purdy
- Anthony James : Ralph Henshaw
[edit] Awards
[edit] Wins
- Academy Award for Best Picture
- Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Drama
- New York Film Critics Circle Awards for Best Picture
- Academy Award for Best Actor - Rod Steiger
- Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama - Rod Steiger
- Academy Award for Film Editing - Hal Ashby
- Academy Award for Sound - Samuel Goldwyn Studios
- Academy Award for Writing Adapted Screenplay - Stirling Silliphant
- Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay - Stirling Silliphant
- BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Actor - Rod Steiger
- BAFTA UN Award - Norman Jewison
- Edgar Award - Best Motion Picture Screenplay - Stirling Silliphant (Ball's book also received an Edgar, for Best First Novel)
[edit] Nominations
- Academy Award for Directing - Norman Jewison
- Academy Award for Sound Editing - James Richard
- BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Actor - Sidney Poitier
- BAFTA Award for Best Film from any Source - Norman Jewison
- Directors Guild of America for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures - Norman Jewison
- Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Director - Norman Jewison
- Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Actor - Drama - Sidney Poitier
- Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Lee Grant
- Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Quentin Dean
- Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media - Quincy Jones
- Writers Guild of America for Best Written American Drama - Stirling Silliphant
[edit] Sequels
In the Heat of the Night was followed by two sequels, They Call Me MISTER Tibbs! in 1970, and The Organization in 1971.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
1961: West Side Story | 1962: Lawrence of Arabia | 1963: Tom Jones | 1964: My Fair Lady | 1965: The Sound of Music | 1966: A Man for All Seasons | 1967: In the Heat of the Night | 1968: Oliver! | 1969: Midnight Cowboy | 1970: Patton | 1971: The French Connection | 1972: The Godfather | 1973: The Sting | 1974: The Godfather Part II | 1975: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest | 1976: Rocky | 1977: Annie Hall | 1978: The Deer Hunter | 1979: Kramer vs. Kramer | 1980: Ordinary People |
Categories: 1967 films | Race-related films | Films based on mystery books | United States National Film Registry | Best Picture Academy Award winners | Films featuring a Best Actor Academy Award winning performance | Films directed by Norman Jewison | United Artists films | Edgar Award winning works