While travelling in the Deep South, Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier), a black Philadelphia homicide detective, becomes unwittingly embroiled in the murder investigation of a local businessman in segregated Sparta, Mississippi, when he is first accused of the crime (because he is a black man) and then asked to solve it.
Finding the killer proves to be difficult, however, especially when his efforts are constantly thwarted by bigoted local Police Chief Gillespie (Rod Steiger).
But neither man can solve this case alone.
Putting aside their differences and prejudices, they join forces in a desperate race against time to discover the shocking truth.
Starring Academy Award winners Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger and Lee Grant, this provocative mystery thriller won five 1967 Oscars, including Best Picture.
Poitier commands his top billing with princely disdain for the white trash who beset him while he unravels a Chandleresque tangle, but Steiger’s gum-snapping, hot-tempered, huge but subtle performance claimed the Academy Award for Best Actor.
Ray Charles‘s unforgettable, bluesy vocals add just the right touch to complement the fine score, which only deepens the hot, humid ambience of the Deep South.
Virgil Tibbs
Sidney Poitier Bill Gillespie
Rod Steiger Sam Wood
Warren Oates Mrs Leslie Colbert
Lee Grant Harvey Oberst
Scott Wilson Dolores Purdy
Quentin Dean Webb Schubert
William Schallert Mama Caleba (Mrs Bellamy)
Beah Richards Packy Harrison
Matt Clark Ralph Henshaw
Anthony James Endicott
Larry Gates Purdy
James Patterson Philip Colbert
Jack Teter
Director
Norman Jewison
Video
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Finding the killer proves to be difficult, however, especially when his efforts are constantly thwarted by bigoted local Police Chief Gillespie (Rod Steiger).
