Before I jump into talking about this movie, let me just say it made me FEEL FEELINGS. Well. Really just one. It was AN INHUMAN UNSPEAKABLE RAGE. So I've decided to shorthand it with the following symbol >| which is sort of a sideways frowny face because I literally do not have words for how ragey it made me feel at some points. Anyway onto the review!
In the Heat of the Night was the Oscar best picture of 1967, and I guess like, kudos to the Academy for giving the win to what I presume to be a very progressive movie at the time? The IMDB synopsis is "An African American police detective is asked to investigate a murder in a racially hostile southern town." Pardon me while I breathe deeply for a few moments. I have to go burn some incense and stare at a picture of President Obama. So the movie begins with a couple of dumbass yokels in a diner, and then the one dumbass who's a cop goes on a patrol and finds a dead rich white guy. The chief of police tells that same guy to go on another patrol to find potential suspects and he finds SYDNEY POITIER(#bless). And instead of asking for his number or something reasonable, he calls Sydney 'BOY' >| >| >| >| and then arrests him even though Sydney is sitting there calmly wearing a suit, and the dumbass cop doesn't hesitate to pull a gun on him >|
Sydney-who's name is iconically MR. TIBBS(#bless) has to deal with more racist idiots at the police station most of all THE CHIEF. Who straightaway is like "Confess! What's your name? Wait, I don't care, you're black so you obviously are the killer." I'M NOT EVEN EXAGGERATING. >|>| But Tibbs calmly explains his name(first name Virgil) and has to deal with the FURTHER injustice of having the dumbass chief laugh at his epic name(VIRGIL WROTE THE AENEID YOU PEA-BRAINED ASS).
Sorry-I had a stroke. I'm fine now. Ok so Virgil is like "I'm a super brilliant homicide detective, so A. I didn't kill the guy, and B. I can help you find the real killer, but C. you're a big bag of douche and I want to get out of this Hellmouth. But because we need a plot, he stays and keeps the chief from repeatedly arresting and charging the wrong guys with murder. I'm not gonna to lie, they throw around the N-word a lot and it made me feel >|>| But the whole way thru, Virgil looks fine as hell in his nice pressed suit(how does he keep it so nice and pressed is one of my main questions) but he calmly deals with multiple bands of Confederate racists coming at him with their torches and pitchforks to kill him-and again NOT EXAGGERATING. One of the main reasons they want to kill him is that another super rich white guy hit Virgil, and obviously VIRGIL HIT BACK(#bless) and then the white guy was so upset that the chief didn't immediately shoot Virgil in the face that he cried the tears of a Trump supporter(I can't tell you how much I'm not making any of this up. Except the Trump part. I mean obviously most of these slack jawed yokels would be ardent Trump supporters if this movie were set in 2018-but that is neither here nor there) But no one seems to care that the white guy hit first(or that he owns a cotton plantation, which is farmed by black folks. And yes, this movie is set in 1967), because obviously white people should be allowed to hit black people without fear of recrimination or consequences whatsoever!! >|>|>|>|>|
Anyway! They catch the killer! Of the white dude! And Sydney Poitier lives! 1 racist dies and another one goes to jail! Hooray!! I think we're all supposed to be super happy at the end that the supremely inept Chief of Police is nice to Virgil and like carries his bag and tells him to take care, but I WEREN'T FALLIN FOR IT YA HEAR! He was racist at the beginning and HE IS STILL RACIST AT THE END, JUST LIKE A BIT LESS. And yes, progress is great and also 1967, but I'm sorry lil me sitting here in 2018 wanted him to get run over by a train multiple times during this movie, especially whenever he would call Virgil BOY >| so like. It's gonna take me a while. To not want a death by train. Y'all he got so mad whenever Virgil would be like 'Uhm, nbd, but you totally shouldn't be throwing the wrong people in prison for the rest of their lives for crimes they didn't commit.' And the Chief would throw toddler tantrums.
Let's talk about Sydney Poitier(#bless)!! Like, if anyone is going to change a racists mind about black people, it probably would be Sydney Poitier-who is so GLORIOUS in this movie. His acting. Y'all. I can't. Sydney conveyed the >| with like the teensiest twitch of the smallest muscle in his fucking eyebrow(not making that up). He was like. It freaks me out how good of an actor he was in this-he was so convincing at being the kind of cop who just like jokes around with the suspects, or promises them something so they'll give up a source. DO NOT EVEN get me started on how he didn't win best actor but the GUY WHO PLAYED THE CHIEF DID >|>|>|>|>|>|>|>|>|>|>|>| I guess kudos to that guy for making me want him to die by train.
The conclusion I've reached is that it was a good movie(it made me feel FEELINGS which it was supposed to do) and didn't shy away from the race stuff obviously. The one problem I have, that I have with a lot of movies like this is that there's always the Good White Person who changes their mind about black people-the chief in this movie. And the people watching at home are supposed to watch and say 'Oh yea, I'm that guy at the end of the movie, when he realized Virgil was a human being with thoughts, feelings, motivations, and also he's quite good at his job.' And I understand it, but I fundamentally disagree with it. Hidden Figures did this a lot too-giving people in the audience the chance to say, 'Yea I'm Kevin Costner when he bashes the Whites Only sign down.' And like, that didn't even happen in real life! And throughout the movie, Virgil will get saved at the last minute by the Chief. Even though VIRGIL IS A COP! And one of the main questions on my mind throughout this movie is WHY THE FUCK DOESN'T HE HAVE A GUN? The Chief lends him a CAR for crying out loud! Why not a gun! To protect himself! And apprehend the culprit! >| >| >|
What I'm trying to say is that this movie is sort of emblematic in a lot of ways of other movies that say good things on the surface, but when you look closer have issues. Stop making the white people rescue people of color! Let them save themselves! Stop having people change their minds about racism just because the people of color are good at something! Racism isn't bad because black people are smart, or Asian people are good looking or whatever. Racism is bad because black people and Asian people ARE FUCKING PEOPLE. It's not about the economic loss of not involving people of color in society, it's about our central humanity(sorry I went off the rails here).
Ok so! The next movie I'm watching is All Quiet on the Western Front, which is the original black and white about WWI. I won't have to use the unspeakable rage emoji!
In the Heat of the Night was the Oscar best picture of 1967, and I guess like, kudos to the Academy for giving the win to what I presume to be a very progressive movie at the time? The IMDB synopsis is "An African American police detective is asked to investigate a murder in a racially hostile southern town." Pardon me while I breathe deeply for a few moments. I have to go burn some incense and stare at a picture of President Obama. So the movie begins with a couple of dumbass yokels in a diner, and then the one dumbass who's a cop goes on a patrol and finds a dead rich white guy. The chief of police tells that same guy to go on another patrol to find potential suspects and he finds SYDNEY POITIER(#bless). And instead of asking for his number or something reasonable, he calls Sydney 'BOY' >| >| >| >| and then arrests him even though Sydney is sitting there calmly wearing a suit, and the dumbass cop doesn't hesitate to pull a gun on him >|
Sydney-who's name is iconically MR. TIBBS(#bless) has to deal with more racist idiots at the police station most of all THE CHIEF. Who straightaway is like "Confess! What's your name? Wait, I don't care, you're black so you obviously are the killer." I'M NOT EVEN EXAGGERATING. >|>| But Tibbs calmly explains his name(first name Virgil) and has to deal with the FURTHER injustice of having the dumbass chief laugh at his epic name(VIRGIL WROTE THE AENEID YOU PEA-BRAINED ASS).
Sorry-I had a stroke. I'm fine now. Ok so Virgil is like "I'm a super brilliant homicide detective, so A. I didn't kill the guy, and B. I can help you find the real killer, but C. you're a big bag of douche and I want to get out of this Hellmouth. But because we need a plot, he stays and keeps the chief from repeatedly arresting and charging the wrong guys with murder. I'm not gonna to lie, they throw around the N-word a lot and it made me feel >|>| But the whole way thru, Virgil looks fine as hell in his nice pressed suit(how does he keep it so nice and pressed is one of my main questions) but he calmly deals with multiple bands of Confederate racists coming at him with their torches and pitchforks to kill him-and again NOT EXAGGERATING. One of the main reasons they want to kill him is that another super rich white guy hit Virgil, and obviously VIRGIL HIT BACK(#bless) and then the white guy was so upset that the chief didn't immediately shoot Virgil in the face that he cried the tears of a Trump supporter(I can't tell you how much I'm not making any of this up. Except the Trump part. I mean obviously most of these slack jawed yokels would be ardent Trump supporters if this movie were set in 2018-but that is neither here nor there) But no one seems to care that the white guy hit first(or that he owns a cotton plantation, which is farmed by black folks. And yes, this movie is set in 1967), because obviously white people should be allowed to hit black people without fear of recrimination or consequences whatsoever!! >|>|>|>|>|
Anyway! They catch the killer! Of the white dude! And Sydney Poitier lives! 1 racist dies and another one goes to jail! Hooray!! I think we're all supposed to be super happy at the end that the supremely inept Chief of Police is nice to Virgil and like carries his bag and tells him to take care, but I WEREN'T FALLIN FOR IT YA HEAR! He was racist at the beginning and HE IS STILL RACIST AT THE END, JUST LIKE A BIT LESS. And yes, progress is great and also 1967, but I'm sorry lil me sitting here in 2018 wanted him to get run over by a train multiple times during this movie, especially whenever he would call Virgil BOY >| so like. It's gonna take me a while. To not want a death by train. Y'all he got so mad whenever Virgil would be like 'Uhm, nbd, but you totally shouldn't be throwing the wrong people in prison for the rest of their lives for crimes they didn't commit.' And the Chief would throw toddler tantrums.
Let's talk about Sydney Poitier(#bless)!! Like, if anyone is going to change a racists mind about black people, it probably would be Sydney Poitier-who is so GLORIOUS in this movie. His acting. Y'all. I can't. Sydney conveyed the >| with like the teensiest twitch of the smallest muscle in his fucking eyebrow(not making that up). He was like. It freaks me out how good of an actor he was in this-he was so convincing at being the kind of cop who just like jokes around with the suspects, or promises them something so they'll give up a source. DO NOT EVEN get me started on how he didn't win best actor but the GUY WHO PLAYED THE CHIEF DID >|>|>|>|>|>|>|>|>|>|>|>| I guess kudos to that guy for making me want him to die by train.
The conclusion I've reached is that it was a good movie(it made me feel FEELINGS which it was supposed to do) and didn't shy away from the race stuff obviously. The one problem I have, that I have with a lot of movies like this is that there's always the Good White Person who changes their mind about black people-the chief in this movie. And the people watching at home are supposed to watch and say 'Oh yea, I'm that guy at the end of the movie, when he realized Virgil was a human being with thoughts, feelings, motivations, and also he's quite good at his job.' And I understand it, but I fundamentally disagree with it. Hidden Figures did this a lot too-giving people in the audience the chance to say, 'Yea I'm Kevin Costner when he bashes the Whites Only sign down.' And like, that didn't even happen in real life! And throughout the movie, Virgil will get saved at the last minute by the Chief. Even though VIRGIL IS A COP! And one of the main questions on my mind throughout this movie is WHY THE FUCK DOESN'T HE HAVE A GUN? The Chief lends him a CAR for crying out loud! Why not a gun! To protect himself! And apprehend the culprit! >| >| >|
What I'm trying to say is that this movie is sort of emblematic in a lot of ways of other movies that say good things on the surface, but when you look closer have issues. Stop making the white people rescue people of color! Let them save themselves! Stop having people change their minds about racism just because the people of color are good at something! Racism isn't bad because black people are smart, or Asian people are good looking or whatever. Racism is bad because black people and Asian people ARE FUCKING PEOPLE. It's not about the economic loss of not involving people of color in society, it's about our central humanity(sorry I went off the rails here).
Ok so! The next movie I'm watching is All Quiet on the Western Front, which is the original black and white about WWI. I won't have to use the unspeakable rage emoji!
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