Ghosts of Mississippi

The civil rights activist Medgar Evers was murdered in 1963 and his killer, Byron De La Beckwith, was acquitted at two trials. In 1994 the case was reopened. The film covers that third prosecution and the work of the district attorney Bobby DeLaughter. Rob Reiner directed. Alec Baldwin plays DeLaughter, Whoopi Goldberg plays Evers's widow and James Woods plays De La Beckwith. Critics praised the performances and objected to the point of view. The Rotten Tomatoes consensus is blunt: James Woods is convincing as a white supremacist, but everything else rings false. Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert both gave it a thumbs down, saying the focus belonged on Evers's story rather than Baldwin's character. The box office collapsed: 13.3 million dollars against a 36 million budget. Alec Baldwin later called it tepid and said this film and The Edge were where the wheels of the train screeched to a halt. James Woods was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 69th Academy Awards, with a further nomination for makeup. Whoopi Goldberg was nominated for an NAACP Image Award. Who it is for: viewers interested in courtroom drama and the history of civil rights. Who it is not for: anyone who cares whose story is being told. That is exactly what the film was most criticised for, and the criticism is fair.