After thirty commercial successes, Roger Corman here tackled the contemporary theme of racism and delivered an exemplary piece of tough-minded, hard-hitting low-budget filmmaking. William Shatner, exuding a sleazy but effective charm, plays a power-hungry demagogue who arrives in a small Southern town reluctantly facing up to desegregation. His impassioned speeches stir up the white community, revive the Ku Klux Klan and lead to attacks on black families and a near-lynching. Adapted from the novel by Charles Beaumont.
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Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
324947
Language
English
Audience classification
MA
Subject categories
Economics, Philosophy, Politics, Religion & Sociology → Racism
Feature films → Feature films - United States
Literature → American literature - Film and video adaptations
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Black and White
Holdings
VHS; Access Print (Section 1)