Compare and Contrast- ``in the Heat of the Night``; Movie...

Compare and Contrast Essay – â€Å"In the Heat of the Night†; Movie or Book? By Johanna â€Å"In The Heat of the Night† is a gripping murder mystery story that incorporates a major issue of the time it was written at; racism. The original novel (published in 1965), written by John Ball, is a story of Virgil Tibbs, a Negro homicide investigator. The death of orchestra-conductor Enrico Mantoli and a series of other events lead up to him in charge of a murder investigation in Wells, Carolina. This is much to the dismay of Bill Gillespie, the extremely prejudice police chief. The movie version (released in 1967), also features Mr. Tibbs as the leader of a murder investigation. However, the setting is Sparta, Mississippi, and the victim is Philip†¦show more content†¦Also, the movie somewhat exaggerated on Mr. Endicott as being a â€Å"bad guy†. From being somewhat a pest, however definitely not on anyone’s ‘bad books’, too being a plantation owner who sends a group of thugs to beat up Virgil is just ludicrous. It seems he is used a s an excuse to bring out another foe, another bit of action to make the movie more exciting. The subtle mystery of not knowing who is â€Å"bad† or â€Å"good† in the novel is a lot more satisfying, perhaps even more once you find out who the real murderer was. The movie, at a full running time of 109 minutes, has quite an exciting plot, with slow parts and exciting action parts. It incorporates many essential things to the original story of ‘In the Heat of the Night’, (such as the association with Delores Purdy) however it differs quite a bit as well. As mentioned above, the setting is in Sparta, Mississippi, where Philip Colbert, planning to build a factory in this town, is murdered. This change of plot on its own removes something that could be considered essential to the plot; romance. The budding relationship between Duena, Enrico Mantoli’s daughter (who doesn’t show up what so ever, seeing as Enrico Mantoli was not the victim) and Offi cer Sam Wood adds a bit of ‘spice’ that is lacking in the movie. On the topic of Sam Wood, his character being a relatively minor one sets a rather different way of looking at his character. In the book, the reader gets a closer glimpse on