Forgotten classic from the 1980s

Rating: 8/10 (1 June 2016)

This film is a fictional re telling of the FBI investigation into the disappearance of three civil rights workers during the 1964 voter registration drive in Mississippi.
Directed by British director Alan Parker(Birdy,Angel Heart) it focuses on two contrasting FBI agents. One is Alan Ward(Willem Dafoe), you and idealistic, and the other Rupert Anderson(Gene Hackman) is older and shrewder. Both men want to solve the case,but their different styles mean that they keep butting heads.
Anderson, a Southerner,understands the people.He may not be a racist himself, but he knows what motivates people. The story he tells Ward about an incident in his childhood is very telling. He is fully aware about what is right and wrong. Ward on the other hand, is confused by the actions of Southerners.He actually says"What is wrong with these people?" which highlights his anger and frustration.In many ways, this is Hackman's film. He fully deserved his Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
Parker does not skimp on the violence, he shows you just how cruel the Ku Klax Klan can be in their use of terror. Churches are burnt down and people are beaten. Unlike the recent film Selma, the violence is not watered down.
We also have a sub plot of Anderson getting close to one of the local women by played by future Oscar winner Frances McDormand. Her husband Brad Dourif's Deputy Pell may actually be part of the Ku Klux Klan. Look out for small parts from Tobin Bell, Frankie Faison,Michael Rooker and Park Overall.
If I have one complaint about this film, it is that it does not have a proper black character. Most of the black actors portray victims of violence or passive bystanders.
Great film from the 1980s that hardly gets shown on TV anymore.