Review of Mississippi Burning (1988) by Andy S — 25 Dec 2018
What a brilliant opening with the segregated water fountains. So simple, yet impactful and reminds us that things were so much worse back then. It makes you think pretty deep. Wow the whole opening is like poetry with the burning church and the water fountain and on top of that, to compliment it, the gospel music in the background. It's almost unbelievable how much unnecessary and ignorant hate there was towards a person who had darker skin. Already I can tell I'm going to be in one hell of a ride.
I don't know why but seeing Gene Hackman and Willem Dafoe almost seems to me like Peanut Butter and Jelly. Already I can tell Dafoe character is the straightedged one and Hackman's is the cynical and jokester one. It's crazy to think how ignorant these backwoods hillbilly redneck shit heads were back then. And some of them are still like that even to this day.
It seems like Gene's character doesn't really care about solving the case because to him, it's not going to make any difference since he knows people in Mississippi ain't going to change. There's still going to be ignorant blissful hate running through all those crackers. I love that quote Hackman says to the mayor, "Baseball, it's the only time a black man can wave a stick at a white man, and not start a riot", and then proceeds to wink and puts on his charm that we all know and love.
Dafoe's character is getting a bit too carried away with agents, he better be careful. Holy shit that saloon scene with that one ignorant white trash shit head was fucking brilliant. I got so much respect for Gene now that he choked that one guys balls out and left him red. It's so sad and also infuriating at the same time to see just how helpless black people were during that time in Mississippi. They couldn't speak up or else they get beaten up or worse. R. Lee Ermey is great in this movie. He popped in one of his great sayings in there. The injustice that's going in unbelievable.
It's so weird to see the guy that plays Jigsaw in the Saw movies as an FBI agent in this one. Amazing how they started busting everyone involved with the murders. I'm glad Redemption was met with a nice big prison sentence. Hope them steel bars taste nice when your taking it up the ass.
Quite a powerful movie and will always be relevant. This is essential movie watching.
This review of Mississippi Burning (1988) was written by Andy S on 25 Dec 2018.
Mississippi Burning has generally received very positive reviews.
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