To me, this movie is perfection.

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

In The Heat Of Night4 And A Half Out Of 5In The Heat Of Night is a rare cinematic art that redefines the genre on its own terms and grasps for something that seemed beyond impossible to achieve and that is its maturity on conveying a message. The scrutiny in here is thought out with each individual character's perspective that makes not only its characters three dimensional but also a more mature and stronger plot that isn't here to merely deliver a nail-biting thriller drama but an all direction view of the black and white aspects of the truth. It may be short on technical aspects like background score, production and art design, but is utterly adequate on editing and cinematography. The adaptive screenplay by Sterling Silliphant is witty, strong, gripping and aware of the characteristics of the characters well enough to keep the audience engaged throughout the course of it and offer them thought-provoking homework, too along with that. Norman Jewison; the director, is in his A game as his pitch on the emotions and the stakes creates the anticipated impact and draws out the best outcomes from the screen. Sidney Poitier is convincing as a protagonist but the real game changer in here is Rod Steiger in his parallel role steals the show with his stellar performance. In The Heat Of Night is a shattering and revealing showdown iterated in a night whose discectomy is just pleasingly ingenious to encounter.

Race relations are brought to the forefront in 'In The Heat Of The Night (1967)', an engaging and well-paced mystery-thriller. The direction is great, the script captures a sense of time and place and Sir Sidney Poitier gives a fantastic, forceful performance. The themes within are just as important today as they were back then and there's a remarkable clarity to the piece, despite some ever-so-slightly problematic aspects expected with a picture of its age, and there is certainly a sense of forward-thinking to the story. It's an important and impactful flick that's as entertaining as it is thought-provoking. 7/10

IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT is a mysterious crime drama film that, through a detective story, brings a critical view of a racial hatred and prejudices. The story is presented as a sort of dilemma between an unresolved murder and an illness of a society. Every interrelationship is described as a kind of incident in this film. It is based on John Ball's 1965 novel of the same name.Mr. Colbert, a wealthy industrialist from Chicago, is constructing a factory in Sparta, Mississippi. One night in September 1966, when driving back into town after a meeting at the plantation home of one of Sparta's leading citizens, Mr. Endicott, he is murdered. Police Officer Wood has found his lifeless body on the street. Police Chief Mr. Gillespie arrives on the scene where the body has been discovered and takes direct charge of the investigation. He speculated that the crime was committed by a random passer-by. At the town train depot, Wood finds a black man, Virgil Tibbs, sitting quietly with his luggage in a business suit. Officer Wood immediately arrests him, cursorily searches him, and finds more than $200 in cash in his wallet. However, Mr. Tibbs is not an ordinary passer-by...Credible characters, melodramatic plot and honest look at one of the biggest social problems are the main aces of this movie. Well, Mr. Jewison did not take into account the coincidences, so some sequences are pretty confusing, but its do not make a great deal of damage to this movie. A clash between an arrogant and incompetent white police chief and a capable and detailed black detective is the most interesting segment of this movie.The characterization is very good and it corresponds to the tense atmosphere and the hostile environment.Sidney Poitier (Detective Virgil Tibbs) and Rod Steiger (Police Chief Bill Gillespie) are two characters with the same problems but with a very different approach. In fact, it does not matter who is the better cop of these two, but who is the better man. Both actors have offered very good performances. A chemistry and tension between them is very impressive.The other actors were not bad, but some of them are quite unconvincing and irritating.Every problem, any suspicion and prejudice can be overcome by communion.

This is possibly a very rare flawless mystery thriller. Everything goes well and the audience are attracted to it. It is also elevated by the stellar performances of Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger, and by the social satire theme about racism. Most of the white men in the town are prejudiced against black people. Yet in the end it is a negro who solves the murder case.