In the Heat of the Night at 51: still incredibly innovative.

In the Heat of the Night is 51 and still insanely innovative.

Never before had a big budget color picture been properly lit for an actor with dark skin — cinematographer Haskell Wexler saw that standard lighting for color film had a tendency to produce a lot of glare on those with darker skin complexions.

Still from IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT. The color scheme really catches the neon rural grit of the film and the dark underbelly of southern society it shows.