在这部炎热的夜晚剧情/悬疑/惊悚/犯罪片中,一个从芝加哥来到斯巴达准备建工厂的商人Mr. Colbert被发现死于街头。一个正在火车站等车的黑人Virgil Tibbs（西德尼·波蒂埃 Sidney Poitier 饰）被警察当作嫌疑犯抓到警察局。一番盘查之下，Tibbs告诉当地警方，他也是一名警察，而且擅长处理凶杀案件。他遭到调查的原因只是因为他是黑人，他迫切想离开当地，然而Tibbs的上司让他留在当地，和当地警长Bill Gillespie（罗德·斯泰格尔 Rod Steiger 饰）一起查案。在这个种族歧视极为严重的地方，Tibbs的调查遭遇了重重阻拦，Bill也劝他早日离开，不要再插手。然而Tibbs却始终不肯放弃，坚持要查出真相......
本片获1968年奥斯卡7项提名，最后赢得包括最佳影片和最佳男主角等5项大奖。
Detective Virgil Tibbs is caught up in the racial tension of the US South when he is arrested after the murder of a prominent businessman. Tibbs was simply waiting for his next train at the station in Sparta, Mississippi and the confusion is soon resolved but when local police chief Gillespie learns that Tibbs is the Philadelphia PD's number one homicide expert, he reluctantly asks for his assistance. The murdered man, Mr. Colbert, had come to Sparta from the North to build a new factory and his wife and business associates immediately point the finger at Endicott, the most powerful man in the county and the one who had the most to lose if a major new employer comes to the area. Tibbs' life is clearly in danger but he perseveres in a highly charged and racially explosive environment until the killer is found.
六十年代的从容不迫。炎热的夜晚——当年的社会现实 永久的警世意义。为何黑人警官会抓到餐馆老板就是犯人？。《炎热的夜晚》：破坏不一定是为了创造。《炎热的夜晚（In the Heat of the Night）》：友谊不分黑与白 （AFI100 TOP 075）。《炎热的夜晚》电影剧本。南方政治。In the Heat of the Night。导演说。炎热中的紧张——南方。
