The Organization (1971) User Reviews

Taking down The Organization?

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 30 July 2008]

Sidney Poitier for the third and last time essayed his Virgil Tibbs character in The Organization. It's definitely one film for the paranoid.

There's a robbery/homicide at a furniture warehouse factory outlet in San Francisco. Problem is that those who committed the robbery didn't necessarily do the homicide.

But Virgil Tibbs is known as an honest cop far and wide and when the robbers contact him with their story, he's real interested. The outlet was an organized crime front and what was taken and not reported was five million dollars worth of heroin. If he's willing to work with them, maybe we can take down The Organization.

But The Organization is very resourceful indeed and Poitier has to watch his back 24/7 because he doesn't know who he can trust in the San Francisco PD. The film does have a real cop feel for it because guys like Garry Walberg, Daniel J. Travanti, Bernie Hamilton, and Gerald S. O'Loughlin who all played prominent TV cops are all in the San Francisco PD with Sid.

The robbers are a group of Seventies Revolutionaries and have such diverse folks as Lani Miyazaki, Ron O'Neal, Billy Green Bush and heading the curious crew is a young Raul Julia. Poitier is right, these people have every reason to be concerned.

The key to the whole thing is widow Sheree North who will either be rich or dead depending on how she plays it. Sheree is great as always.

Poitier as in They Call Me, MISTER TIBBS is married to Barbara McNair. Funny though, when Virgil Tibbs as Howard Rollins decided to go back to work for the Sparta, PD his wife became Althea instead of Valerie which she is in both of these films.

The ending shows that the effort might not have been worth it after all. The Organization is EVERYWHERE.

V. Tibbs still at it!

[mdewey · 7/10 · 7 May 2008]

Sydney reprises his Mr. Tibbs moniker in a nicely paced crime drama that has some well orchestrated action sequences, especially the one at the onset of the film. Those first 10 minutes or so reminded me of the heist scene in "Rififi" (1955), in that this scene too was captured with no dialog, letting the viewer see for himself how the action plan was set into motion.

Some reviewers "dissed" the 70's sound track and street jargon, but what do you expect? It's a period piece, a 70's action film and by definition will employ those contemporary motifs. To me, it's both refreshing and amusing to be thrust back into the cultural modes of yesteryear.

The plot line may have had some small weaknesses to it and some of the actors were no Academy Award nominee hopefuls, but the thrust of the film keeps you attentive and anticipatory. Also, it was nice to see Raul Julia, Demond Wilson and Ron O'Neal in one of their earlier films. Sydney, as usual, shines in his rendition of the Tibbs detective. But the plot twists toward the end where Mr. Tibbs puts the pieces together and gets ready to see justice served... Well, see for yourself in this brutally realistic conclusion.

An obscure delight

[The_Movie_Cat · 6/10 · 28 September 1999]

Perhaps the least-known Poitier work, certainly of the period; at date of writing only nine IMDb members had voted on this film. This is just over 1% of the votes attained by it's initial prequel, the superb "In The Heat of the Night". Between the two is the awful-yet-lovable "They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!" which took the Virgil Tibbs franchise on a downward slope.

Those that do get to see this movie on it's rare t.v. rescreenings and decide to give it a go after the disappointing "Tibbs" will be justly rewarded. Essentially, the production team is the same as the previous film, though Gil Melle provides a jazz-orientated score instead of Quincy Jone's adequate but inappropriate themes. The domesticity is also played down, with Alan R.Trustman absent as co-writer and James R. Webb taking full control of the screenplay. Most importantly, though, is Don Medford as the well above average director. Apart from a rather crude edit where a car accident occurs in the second half of the picture, the scenes are melded together seamlessly and flow together exceptionally well.

Poitier reprises the role of Tibbs, an arrogant, aloof, bad-tempered, authoritarian, bigoted Lieutenant. As a result, this is probably the most appealing of all Sidney's characters, and he slips back into the role effortlessly. With no star names to support him, such as Rod Steiger or Martin Landau (though Raul Julia did become a star later in life), Sidney stands way above his peers. His ability to project a bad atmosphere every time he walks into a room is flawless. This time he is not let down by the plot, either, which sees Tibbs caught between the Police Department and a vigilante gang that seeks to expose a wide net of heroin dealers. The plot takes on many shifts in loyalty and focus, keeping the attention, while a chase through underground tunnels lends the requisite chase an extra air of tension. The racial motif is again absent, though a rival black cop played by Bernie Hamilton gives off a frisson of resentment.

While predictably not of the calibre of "In Heat of the Night", The Organization stands as the greatest of Sidney's seventies vehicles.

Post-Script, March 2016: Over 16 years since I wrote this review (where does the time go?) I realise that I was too soft on what is quite a shaky film. Continuity and editing are not great, and the tone is frequently dirge-like. It's OKAY, but the concluding line that it's the best of Sidney's 70s movies was clearly written by a man who hadn't then seen The Wilby Conspiracy or Brother John. It's what's known as a "take a chance" point of view, and in this case it was wide of the mark.

This is the third of Virgil Tibbs series based on the role originated in the successful ¨In the heat of the night¨

[ma-cortes · 5/10 · 27 February 2018]

3º installment based on the role originated in the successful ¨In the heat of the night , this ¨The organization¨(1971) directed by Don Medford , in which Tibbs/Sidney Poitier is out to break up a ring of dope smugglers while helps a bunch of idealistic vigilantes (Ron O'Neal ,Raul Julia , Miyazaki , James Watson , Billy Geen Bush) expose a drug ring run by a powerful ringleader . This outing boasts a nice cast as Barbara McNair , Shree North , Raul Julia , Ron O'Neal , Allan Garfield and Daniel J Travanti . Here we find San Francisco Police Lieutenant Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) called in to investigate a sinister case . The African-American detective now married (to Barbara McNair) with family pursues baddies and tries to bust a major dope-smuggling operation .

It is a weak sequel to immensely popular ¨In the heat of the night¨ , this third one results to be an inferior follow-up that has action , suspense , drama , thrills , violence and intriguing finale . This packs the further adventures of the role Tibbs/Sidney Poitier created for the film ¨In the heat of the night¨ . The picture turns out to be slow , boring and it has dated one bit . The movie is realized in Television style , though contains some exciting chase sequences , pursuits and surprising ending . Here Sidney Poitier reprises his ordinary character , giving nice acting . Remaining cast is frankly well , such as : Raul Julia , Fred Beir , Billy Green Bush , Ross Hagen , Allen Garfield , Sheree North and special mention for Gerard O' Loughlin . Atmospheric and evocative cinematography by Joseph Biroc . And adequate music score by Gill Melle in his usual style , mixing sounds from Lalo Schifrin , Isaac Hayes and Quincy Jones .

The trilogy starts with the excellent ¨In the heat of the night¨ (1967) that won 5 Oscars , in which Tibbs joins forces with redneck sheriff who grudgingly accepts helps in resolve a bizarre killing , being directed by Norman Jewison , it stars Rod Steiger , Warren Oates , Lee Grant , Anthony James . The second installment is ¨They called me Mister Tibbs¨ (1970) in which Tibbs is called to investigate when a liberal street preacher (Martin Landau) is suspicious the murder a prostitute , as again finding out a killing and attempting to clear his friend , as well . And the third and final appearance , this ¨The Organization¨ is the third and last in Tibbs series .

The motion picture was middlingly directed by Don Medford . This is one of various and professional works of his long career as filmmaker . He directed a lot of TVfilms and episodes as ¨Dinasty¨, ¨Colby¨, ¨Alfred Hitchcock presents¨, ¨Airwolf¨, ¨Trauma center¨, Baretta¨, ¨City of Angels¨, ¨Most wanted¨,FBI¨, ¨Twilight zone¨, and made films as ¨To trap a spy¨and a good as well as violent Western : ¨The hunting party¨. Rating : 5,5 Passable and acceptable . The flick will appeal to Sidney Poitier fans .

The end of Virgil Tibbs

[lastliberal · 6/10 · 27 September 2007]

We first met Virgil Tibbs waiting for a train in Sparta Mississippi In the Heat of the Night. For those that didn't know, he reminded us in They Call Me MISTER Tibbs. Now, he had his badge taken away after no keeping his Captain informed as he fought The Organization in San Francisco.

Maybe the hippie thing is getting tired: calling police "pigs," and the weird dress, and constant "man"'s, or maybe Tibbs is getting tired, but this was just a fair viewing of Sidney Potier as Virgil Tibbs.

Well, at least he is still married to the same woman (Barbara McNair), and I always like seeing Raul Julia (Moon Over Parador, Kiss of the Spider Woman), there is "Superfly" (Ron O'Neal), Daniel J. Travanti when he was Dan Travanty, and Max Gail, whom I remember from "Barney Miller." Sidney Potier is always worth watching and you might have an additional favorite above.

Mr. Tibbs Delivers Again

[view_and_review · 8/10 · 21 June 2019]

This is the third installment of the series of movies starring Sidney Poitier as Virgil Tibbs and I think it's even better than part two (They Call Me Mister Tibbs!). Lt. Tibbs is still in San Francisco and he still has the same rotten son. Yeah, I called that little boy rotten. He wasn't smoking and beating up his sister but he hadn't quite changed his attitude either.

The movie starts with a well coordinated break in of a furniture store. The thieves make off with some drugs and though they left the manager alive he was found dead by the police. It wasn't long before Virgil was pulled into the plot and clued in on what the theft was all about.

I appreciated this storyline a lot better than TCMMT!. The movie is part vigilantism part brilliant police work. I liked that the cast was very diverse, and they were working together for a noble goal. Initially, it looked like it may be about some common thieves or even some 70's radical organization out to wreak havoc. When it was revealed that the multicultural group was only interested in stopping the flow of heroin to their communities I instantly perked up. I was genuinely surprised and I was genuinely thrilled about such a goal.

From there it was a deadly cat and mouse game with the vigilantes, the police, and the organization. It was a different type of vigilante movie. The small group of fed up men and woman weren't out killing drug dealers and trying to work their way to the top, they only wanted to expose the drug operation so that the police could take over. They weren't sure who on the police force was trustworthy but they took their chances with Virgil Tibbs and he didn't disappoint.

Naturally, with Mr. Tibbs there's always a twist in there. Even though I was preparing myself for that twist he fooled me again. Although I'm almost 50 years late with this trilogy, it is now one of my favorites.

Some seriously dumb vigilantes!

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 15 November 2021]

Following the success of "In the Heat of the Night", Sidney Poitier made two more films starring the cop, Virgil Tibbs. However, neither of the sequels were like the original film in several ways. Inexplicably, Tibbs works for the San Francisco Police Department, though in the original film he was a detective with the Philadelphia Police Department. He also didn't have a family...but does in the sequels. But, more importantly, neither of the sequels were about race prejudice...Tibbs was just a good cop working homicide as a detective.

When the story begins, a group of amateurs break into a building and steal millions of dollars in drugs. But they are not planning on selling it but stole it to hurt the organization marketing drugs in the city. But they don't want to work with the cops, as the department is apparently filled with men on the take with this organized crime ring...and they approach Tibbs since he's known as an honest cop. Naturally, there's a lot more to it than this and the plan does not go smoothly at all! So, it's left to Tibbs to pick up the pieces and work the case....even though he's not in the Vice Squad.

This film is a departure from the second film in that "They Call Me Mr. Tibbs!" had a lot in it about Tibbs' personal life and family. In "The Organization", there isn't much about this...it's mostly just a straight cop drama....much like a Dirty Harry film but without the same level of violence. Worth seeing but the weakest of the three films.

Not a bad film but sort of hokey even then but still fun to watch

[Falkenberg2006 · 7 September 2006]

I lived in San Francisco from 1964-1980 and got to see a LOT of movies filmed there. I watched them film the sections in Bart ( being built back then and one of the film's chase scenes goes on in the tunnel) and Muni and saw this and the 2 previous Virgil Tibbs films in San Francisco theatres.

It is fun to look at this movie after 30+ years and see what is still there and what has changed over the years. The 70's seems like a million years ago. The Phillips gas station on Beach Street has had about 10 different brands over the years. The hofbrau on Turk Street ( Iate there every night, it was cheap) and Lew Lehr's steak house disappeared in the 80s.Hare Krishna's on Market Street across from the Sheraton Palace.

I feel this movie is better than the previous Tibbs film, but my opinion is, of course, subjective. Even a bad detective movie has some merits.

Of course, the premise of this film, that 6 people could bring down "the organization" ( mafia?) by stealing 4 million dollars worth of heroin is kind of silly. And the organization is having a hard time coming up with cash to buy back the drugs? Come on guys....

As for the 70s music, well, Lalo Schiffrin and others composed a lot of movie music back then and times change. I liked the music myself.

The 70s saw a lot of movies filmed in the city by the bay. Bullitt, The Laughing Policeman, The Dirty Harry Films, The Monk ( TV film, not the recent TV show, this was with George Maharis and Janet Leigh), The Towering Inferno,and the Streets of San Francisco TV show. I worked as an extra in films in those days and miss that era of cheap food, cheap rent, and cheap Giants tickets...

A great site I just found shows probably every movie filmed in San Francisco.

http://www.MisterSF.com

click on cinematic sf !

George Senda Concord, Ca

Taut thriller with breathless action

[jwpeel-1 · 14 August 2004]

Just the other night, I watched this film and Turner Classic Movies and was as entertained and the first time I watched this film. Like a lot of pictures of the 1970s, it is riddled with the "urban slang" of the period and seen by Hollywood. In other words, it is more colorful than real speech in the real world, but that is to be expected. It is also peopled with the great character actors of the time, many who have become stars later in their film careers.

Raul Julia plays a Puerto Rican drug dealer which was certainly no great stride for Hispanic actors working in Hollywood, but it is after all a crime drama and such people do exist. Still, Mr. Julia turns in his usual five-star performance. Poitier is his usual cool and intelligent self which is a big thing in films of just about any period, and Alan Garfield again plays the New York con with his usual believability.

The chase in the finale is breathtaking and equal to that of such great films as "The French Connection." Also, the kicker is in the final expedition seen where the entire crime is exposed by the brilliant work of our intrepid hero detective Virgil Tibbs.

One of the notable actors in this film is Sherry North who plays the rich Park Avenue white woman with a past in a manner not unlike her work in "Charlie Varrick."

It is a shame that Sidney Poitier did not again portray Virgil Tibbs, but we do have these three films, two of which are sensational. It is a privilege to add it to my detective movies on video collection.

Midnight Medford Rides Again!

[JohnHowardReid · 2/10 · 4 November 2015]

You can't teach new tricks to an old dog especially if the oldie's name is Don Medford. Don was an excellent TV director, but as a director of feature films like "The Organization", he was unteachable. Mr. Medford didn't have the slightest idea what a reverse angle was, but he did know how to say, "No way, José!", if his cameraman suggested one. Mr. Medford's favorite shot was a close-up. To Medford, a really good movie was one composed almost entirely of close-ups. I'll admit that this suited the requirements of TV right down to the ground. On a big screen, however, it looks both ugly and ridiculous. Each scene in a Medford film is composed of a multiplicity of close-ups, haphazardly strung together in an extremely jerky and often bewildering manner. It's even hard to identify the baddies, due to Medford's erratic style. There is, however, one scene in this movie that Medford actually got right – or maybe he was away that day? I refer to the excitingly staged and handled shoot-out in the excavation tunnel. Alas, in keeping with the pedestrian and inappropriate direction, the music score is one of the most deliriously unsuitable and loudly obtrusive we have heard for some time.

Mr Tibbs is back!!

[chinaskee · 7/10 · 12 June 2001]

From its suspenseful opening heist scene to its realistic ending,Sidney Poitier's third and final outing as Vigil Tibbs is everything a cop movie should be.Well cast with some great chase scenes.Director Don Medford keeps the fun rolling along at a nice pace.All in all,a great film.

third and last

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 25 September 2019]

Six people break into the Century Furniture factory. San Francisco Police Lieutenant Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) is called in to investigate a dead executive. Nothing else is reported missing. The group of vastly different people reveals themselves to the trustworthy Tibbs. They had stolen a large stash of heroin from the factory in an attempt to overthrow a secret drug ring. They had kidnapped the executive but he was alive when they left.

This is the third and last movie for the iconic Virgil Tibbs who was first introduced in the hit movie, In the Heat of the Night. These sequels missed the point of the original and they paid dearly for it. As for this story, there are some inconsistencies. The group is trying to end the drug trade and one would expect them to destroy the heroin after showing it to Tibbs. Once one of them is tracked down by the Organization, the group's first priority should be to flush the drugs and I don't understand why he would go to Washington Square. A lot of the group's actions make no sense. The dialogue is pretty clunky and the flaws in the writing is too constant. At least, it's a little better than the second movie.

Virgil Tibbs, San Francisco detective

[RanchoTuVu · 7/10 · 2 September 2017]

Virgil Tibbs apparently left his detective post in Philadelphia for one in San Francisco, where he shows up investigating a robbery of furniture company that's actually a front for The Organization, a group of businessmen dedicated to the sale of heroin. A Mod Squad of locals orchestrates the robbery as the film opens, stealing four million dollars worth of smack, not to sell it, but to keep it off the streets. Since they're not hardened drug dealers, they're not much of a match for the well-portrayed hit men of the Organization, leaving it up to Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) to try to protect them while working to break the heroin ring. The outdoor locations are great, with one car chase that succeeds quite well, but overall it mostly resembles one of those made-for-TV movies of that era.

Tight supporting cast shows up the star lead

[moonspinner55 · 5/10 · 2 November 2017]

Sidney Poitier walks through role as San Francisco police lieutenant Virgil Tibbs in this second sequel to 1968's "In the Heat of the Night", following "They Call Me Mister Tibbs!" from the previous year. Plot, however, is engrossing and complicated as a multi-racial, anti-drug revolutionary group summons Tibbs to their hideout, hoping to take him into their confidence. They've just pulled off the elaborate robbery of four millions dollars' worth of heroin from the vault of a furniture-making company--unfortunately, they had to kidnap one of the top executives to get the vault open and, after they left, he was murdered. What the revolutionaries were planning to do with the heroin isn't really clear (if it's a shakedown of the drug syndicate they wanted, they'll need a lot more members!). Still, they manage to disrupt everyone involved in the acquisition of the smack, from the suit-and-tie organization in their skyscraper headquarters to their goons on the street to the furniture company's night watchman, who gets shot on his way to the station with Tibbs for questioning. Tibbs agrees to work with the group, which forces him to conceal his knowledge of information from his department as well as from the highly defensive chief of narcotics, whose superior just committed suicide. Poitier isn't convincing interacting with the vigilantes, nor with his superiors, nor with wife Barbara McNair and their two kids; it's a dud performance. The colorful supporting cast of character actors (Raul Julia, Allen Garfield, Bernie Hamilton, Billy "Green" Bush, Dan Travanty, Sheree North, Ron O'Neal, Maxwell Gail Jr.) nearly makes up for the star's lethargy, and the San Francisco locations are an asset. Director Don Medford keeps the scenario busy, but it's activity without a lot of gripping action, the chases and shoot-outs coming right off an assembly-line. ** from ****

You've seen it all before

[natashabowiepinky · 5/10 · 12 June 2015]

Ah, the 70's. Big guns, bigger cars and acknowledgements that *GASP!* police departments have black people too. Close on the heels of Isaac Hayes as Shaft, there was Sidney Poitier as Mister Tibbs. Both starred in a number of films based around their characters, although Poitiers tended to be slightly more realistic in nature (What with them being directly made with the assistance of the local force) and with less wanton violence.

That doesn't mean they were immune to suffering from cliché-itis, though. So you have the usual schtick where the bad guys turn out to be the good guys, endless chase sequences through crowded streets and of course... The 'pivotal' moment where Tibbs has to hand over his gun and badge due to him being suspected of corruption. It may not be the movie's fault that such scenes have been done to death over 40 years, but it is what it is.

Poitier keeps things ticking over nicely with his usual reliable screen presence, and the sparse family moments he shares with his wife and son are a nice touch... Although, too brief to really be that effective. Overall, it's an interesting look at a Gene Hunt era of law enforcement which is long since past (for better or worse) but in terms of entertainment, very, very average. 5/10

Bye Bye Mr. Tibbs

[wordsmith_57 · 6/10 · 3 April 2009]

Sydney Poitier is marvelous in any movie he has been in, so far as I have noticed. When he first showed up as MISTER Tibbs in Heat of the Night, I knew it would be a great watch. Unfortunately, by the third run, The Organization, even his usual and expected dazzlement could not save the faulty plot and slow pacing. The premise of a group of amateurs trying to bring down "the organization" and then trying to drag in a good cop like Tibbs (who doesn't let the force know what he is doing) is, well, thin and silly. There were great slices of Tibbs' home life with his son and daughter, which goes to show that Poitier brings life into even a tedious period cop piece like this one. Overall, it's still watchable, but only if you are a dedicated Poitier fan.

the awesome sidney poitier does it again

[ksf-2 · 6/10 · 12 October 2019]

Part three of the Mister Tibbs detective chapters. Sidney Poitier in another who-dunnit, this time in san francisco. which was also the setting for his "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" ! After a huge heroin robbery, Tibbs is brought in to figure out what's going on. Graham Jarvis is the employee "Martin". he was awesome in New Leaf and What's Up Doc ? Max Gail (Barney Miller) is in here as Rudy. keep an eye out for Daniel Travanti from "Hill Street Blues." and from The Rookies, Gerald O'Loughlin. those actors will be in all kinds of cop shows. Tibbs isn't sure who to trust, so he starts keeping secrets from his own boss, and from Narcotics, when they get involved. of course, that makes it look like HE was the guilty party. it's all pretty well done. quite rare, that a third chapter could be so good. Directed by Don Medford. he did mostly television after this one. Not bad.

Similar to "Bullitt," but with Virgil Tibbs (Poitier) as the detective

[Wuchakk · 6/10 · 25 October 2017]

RELEASED IN 1971-72 and directed by Don Medford, "The Organization" features detective Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) working in San Francisco where he encounters a noble radical group who want to take down a crime syndicate that deals in heroin. Barbara McNair plays Virgil's wife while Raul Julia & Ron O'Neal play two of the vigilantes.

This was the third and final Virgil Tibbs movie, which happened to be the first detective movie series in color to go three films (or so they say). Between the first film, "In the Heat of the Night" (1967), and the second film, "They Call Me Mr. Tibbs" (1970), Tibbs transferred from Philadelphia to San Francisco and now had a family (he was single in the first film). This was perhaps done due to the success of "Bullitt" (1968) and the spectacular locations of San Francisco in general.

Speaking of the iconic "Bullitt," "The Organization" is similar in tone, but more melodramatic, like "Dirty Harry," which was released around the same time. While "The Organization" is the least of the three, it's not far off and has its own points of interest. There's an over-the-top funky score by Gil Melle, which certainly dates the movie, but it was avant-garde at the time ("hip" and "happening"). The scores to those other movies are dated too, of course, but they're not as overdone. Personally, I appreciate the music. Sheree North was 38 during shooting and plays a past-her-prime alcoholic babe, but she was still very jaw-dropping.

If you've seen "In the Heat of the Night," it's interesting to see Tibbs in his own stomping grounds, i.e. the multiculturalism of the big city, as opposed to be an understandably angry stranger in a small town of the still-prejudiced Deep South. As a snapshot of Big City, USA, 1970 (when it was filmed) "The Organization" is priceless. The climax is clumsily abrupt and ambiguous, yet it illustrates that Tibbs won the battle, but lost the war.

THE FILM RUNS 106 minutes and was shot in San Francisco. WRITER: James R. Webb.

GRADE: B/B- (6.5/10)

A pretty good cop movie

[phantopp · 6/10 · 9 September 2009]

While investigating a corporate break-in, San Francisco Police Detective "Virgil Tibbs" (Sidney Portier) discovers that the suspects are in reality a group of revolutionaries bent on destroying a drug cartel known as "The Organization." Without permission from his superiors, "Tibbs" begins to work with the revolutionaries. They work their own ways, "Tibbs" working within police regulations, but still together.

This is a pretty well written movie, but with some slight flaws in performances. The pacing of the movie is slow, but well paced.

The stand out performance is easily Portier. This is the third movie where he portrays "Tibbs," of which he is probably best known for. He plays "Tibbs" two ways in the film. First, he plays the cop. You actually believe that he is a veteran on the police force. "Tibbs" passion is his work, and Portier makes you believe it. He also plays "Tibbs" as a family man who obviously loves his family. We don't get to see a lot of this side of the character since the focus is on the case he is on.

One problem with this movie is that the supporting characters is poorly presented. There is little to no development in the revolutionaries, and we don't get to see much of "The Organization" beyond the hired guns. I was also unimpressed with their on-screen chemistry with each other. Not one really stood out if you ask me. In fact, I felt that these characters would fit better in an early-1970's television series than in a major motion picture.

When it comes to the soundtrack, it's typical 1970's movie music. Not one piece is memorable. However, some pieces of music was used quite well in scenes.

The action is pretty toned down in this film, probably because of the time it was filmed. You get a lot of chases on foot, and one pretty forgettable car chase. You also get some gun play with little blood. There is little to no intensity in the action scenes. The only thing that makes these scenes intense is the music played over them.

There is a pretty good, and unexpected twist at the end of the movie, and it's handled pretty well thanks to Portier's performance. I didn't see it coming. There is also some really good transition edits in this film that I thought were done nicely.

Though not a perfect movie, it is enjoyable, mostly thanks to Portier's performance.

If you ever catch this on HBO or the free section of your On Demand service, check it out if your regular show is either not on for alternative programming or in a rerun. I actually watched it on Hulu, and only had to deal with about two minutes of commercials, which were sometimes oddly placed.

Not bad ...

[Delrvich · 8/10 · 28 December 2019]

A lot of 70s stars. A few dramatic references to that cliche ... you know ... "The Organization!"

Mediocre detective movie

[HotToastyRag · 4/10 · 12 November 2017]

Of the films starring the immortal character Virgil Tibbs, The Organization is the third and final installment. Don't worry, though; Sidney Poitier made a lot of movies where he played an agent or a detective, so you can keep watching him save the day. It's not necessary, but you'll probably want to watch In the Heat of the Night first, and depending on how much you liked it, They Call Me Mister Tibbs. In this one, Sidney is drawn into a radical group who want to expose and destroy "the organization". It doesn't really feel like the first two films, though. It feels a little more like a mediocre detective movie with the normal amount of violence, law-breaking, explosions, and gun-waving.

Believe it or not, my main criticism with the film is one others might not even notice. When Barbara McNair asks her husband what's going on, since she's concerned for his safety after the violence and death threats in the beginning of the film, Sidney's response is to say, "Honey, make me a sandwich," and wink at her. As handsome as he is, if I were his wife, I wouldn't have been happy at his answer. She's married to a famous detective who's been featured in two other films, he's constantly the target of violent groups and criminals, and even if he weren't famous, he's chosen a dangerous profession. It's not unreasonable for her to worry, or for her to ask for more information! When Sidney blew her off, I lost a little respect for him and a little interest in the film as a whole.

"Power to the People"

[sol1218 · 6/10 · 3 August 2009]

***SPOILERS*** The third and final installment of the adventures of former Philadelphia detective Let. Virgil Tibbs, Sidney Poitier. Tibbs now a member of the SFDP homicide division gets in over his head in an effort to take on "The Organization" that's running both the city and State.

In the movie Tibbs gets himself involved with this rag tag revolutionary group made up of former junkies or persons who had members of their family or friends end up dead because of using illegal drugs. Drugs that "The Organization"-through its army of drug pushers-supplied to them at a nifty profit for itself! The revolutionaries lead by street corner preacher Dave Thomas, Billy Green Bush, had raided one of "The Organization's" phony business fronts, the Century Furniture Co., used as a storage center for it's drug shipments. During the raid, where the revolutionary's ripped off $4,000,000.00 in heroin, the CEO of the company John J. Bishop, Johnny Haymer, was murdered. Not by the revolutionaries but by someone, or someones, who were afraid he'd talk to the police if it's found out that he's a front-man for "The Organization".

Called to the scene of the break-in murder Tibbs senses that he's on to something big in that the night watchman George Morgan, Charles H. Gray, who was knocked out by the intruders is holding something back from the police. That something turned out to be the 4 million dollars in heroin that was taken from the plant! Tipped off to who did it, by the robbers themselves, Tibbs decides to find Bishop's killer on his own relying on the revolutionaries. The revolutionaries in them being suspected in both murder and kidnapping, of John J. Bishop, has Tibbs decide not to have his superiors on the SFPD know about what he's doing in working with them to find Bishop's killer! As well as his connection with "The Organization" who's suspected by Tibbs in having him killed!

***SPOILERS*** Let. Tibbs against his better judgment gets himself involved with a bunch of mentally unstable,from being addicted to hard drugs, persons who end up almost getting him killed in his, very foolishly, trying to help them. This group of urban "freedom fighters", or vigilantes, fall apart as soon as "The Organization" puts the squeeze on them! Not that "The Organizaton" had that much on them, it didn't, but because the not too bright "freedom fighters", for the people, were so unable to keep a secret, the stolen 4 million in heroin, that it didn't take that long for "The Organization" to find out who they were and whack them! In fact they themselves, or some of them, tried to sell the drugs back to "The Organization" which tipped it off to just who were the people who stole it!

As for Let. Tibbs he soon realized what a total schmuck he was but by then it was far too late for him to turn things around. In his putting both his job as well as life on the line, by him throwing in his lot with this bumbling gang of latter day Jesse Jameses, Tibbs threw it, his career as a policemen, in and was never seen or heard from again. In that there's was never another sequel to the Virgil Tibbs saga, this being the third and final installment, to come out of the Hollywood studios again!

He needs a nail trim...

[athies · 4/10 · 12 November 2020]

Impressive entrance.

Since when does punching the back of the neck knock someone out?

I don't think you can see or BREATHE well through a Saran Wrap face!

There is already a lot going on for a movie of this time.

Now that is an old school bomb.

Continuity check... the bomb did nothing to the gates??

All the senior officers wear a trench coat.

What the hell is this weird phone conversation? Is the in code?

You call your son "man"?

Thank goodness we get to see him eat the sandwich. This provides a lot of character building. We know his wife knows how to make a sandwich. What is left out is what kind of sandwich?

Is this the Ocean's Five crew?

A really old school drive by.

Nice bit of police racism injected there.

A band-aid box?

Wojciehowicz!

That is a very cool rear mirror effect.

The 2x4 vs the car scene is surprisingly menacing.

This movie has a lot of scenes around a sink.

Is that a carrot platter?

This is crazy foot chase music.

That was a horrible attempt to climb the fence. I'm glad he failed miserably.

Nice sneak attack Joe.

Who puts their entire grocery bag in the fridge?

What was that weird exchange? Why did she shove some food(?) in his mouth? And he didn't say he wanted coffee?

Horrendous stain on his shirt.

He's not going to rip the cocaine bag like that!

How is the floor slippery for one guy but not the others.

He really doesn't want to be on social media.

Now this chase music is more like it.

Back then they must not have realized you can cut the music to the scene length instead of filming the chase until the song ends.

Should I gasp now?

Weird end bit.

An absolute must see for fans of films from this era

[kevin_robbins · 7/10 · 8 November 2022]

The Organization (1971) is a movie that I recently watched on Tubi. The storyline follows Mr. Tibbs as he comes across a group of vigilantes with motivation to bring down a local drug ring. They all seem to know someone adversely impacted by the drugs on the streets and they've had enough. Mr. Tibbs will help them bring down the drug ring the right way.

This movie is directed by Don Medford (To Trap a Spy) and stars Sidney Poitier (Guess Who's Coming to Dinner), Barbara McNair (Change of Habit), Raul Julia (The Addams Family), Sheree North (Breakout), Ron O'Neal (Super Fly) and Bernie Hamilton (Starsky & Hutch).

I really enjoyed this cast and storyline. They had the right look and feel for this storyline. Raul Julia was a nice addition to the cast and was eccentric and a lot of fun. Sidney Poitier was excellent as Mr. Tibbs and portrayed his classic intense, direct and stoic self. I always enjoy his no nonsense approach. The car chases and shootouts are classic 70s and a lot of fun and the ending is perfect for the genre.

Overall, this is a classic Mr. Tibbs picture that is an absolute must see for fans of films from this era. I would score this a solid 7/10 and strongly recommend it.

Tries to be Bullitt and fails

[proffate · 15 October 2002]

Sidney Poitier reprises his Virgil Tibbs role from In the Heat of the Night as a San Francisco police officer who forms an uneasy alliance with a group of well-meaning vigilantes who stole 40 lbs of heroin from the syndicate's import headquarters.

It's hard to find anything specific that's wrong with the film, except that if you're going to have a car chase in SF, it should be more than a minute long.

Maybe it's just the annoying 70s music....