Mississippi Burning (1988)

Plot of Mississippi Burning: In 1964 in the fictional Jessup County three civil rights workers are shot by members of the KKK. Soon after, once they are reported missing, the FBI arrive to sort things out.  The team is led by, by the book, Alan Ward, assisted by the local expert Rupert Anderson, and throughout Ward and Anderson argue about the process. The investigation his hampered by the fact that the locals, including the law enforcement officers are not on their side, but eventually Mrs Pell, the wife of the Deputy Sheriff, reveals where the bodies are buried (literally). Meanwhile the town has been invaded by the media and this has somehow caused what are effectively riots by black people and retribution by whites to take place, which mostly results in the shacks of the blacks being burnt and some attempted lynchings. The FBI are stymied until Ward, having run out of options due to KKK control of the witnesses, gives Anderson permission to use some unconventional methods to find out what really went on.

Content: No sex or nudity but almost continuous smoking and quite a bit of casual drinking. The execution of the civil rights workers is indicated a bit off screen. One black witness sees the KKK firebomb a house and three men are tried, but the judge gives the villains suspended sentences and accuses the FBI of causing trouble. Anderson gets close to Mrs Pell the wife of the deputy which results in them finding the bodies, and the beating of Mrs Pell by her husband. He also brings in an enforcer by aircraft who kidnaps the mayor and threatens him with castration unless he spills the beans. The information gained allows them to trick a minor Klan member into revealing what happened, firstly by driving around with him in their car, and then pretending that other Klan members are out to kill him.

A View: I had seen this film years ago, but saw it again the other day. It still resonates, despite the fact that the makers were accused of making a drama out of a serious civil rights disaster, and presented only the view of the FBI. While all this may be true, it manages to present the message that there was no way black people could get justice in Mississippi in 1964. So, in my view, a terrific film which is well worth your time even 36 years after it was released.

Fun Fact: This was Roger Ebert’s selection for the best film of 1988.