In The Heat Of The Night

Superb thriller starring Rod Steiger in an Oscar-winning role as Bill Gillespie, a shrewd southern sheriff, and Sidney Poitier as Virgil Tibbs, a sensitive, intellectual detective from the big city. When a wealthy industrialist is murdered in the little town of Sparta, Mississippi, a well-dressed black stranger is arrested while waiting at the train station. The stranger, Tibbs, identifies himself as a Philadelphia policeman, and, under orders from his superiors up north, assists Gillespie in his investigation. Gillespie grudgingly accepts his assistance and protects him from brutal attacks by local rednecks, and the two grow to admire each other as they confront r...