i can not comment on how closely this film track to the real life event that it supposedly follow . but a a movie and it fall short of it potential by lapse into the preachy and stereotypical hollywood style which have become so commonplace in today cinema . i doubt there be many soul leave today who would deny that the kkk do some horrific thing and or that there wasn not a pervasive racist culture in the south in the early 60 . but if there be and this movie try to dispel all remain skeptic with the subtlety of a lead balloon . by try to tie up hatred and bigotry into one neat little package ( by compartmentalize and homogenize group of people ) and the movie fail in a rather big way . i mean and how many time have we be feed the message that all southerner be ignorant racist and that all black be innocent bystander barely capable of control their own destiny and or that liberal educate white be the savior of the human race . hardly original ( or truthful ) . beyond the problem of the message and the movie have other fault . william dafoe just isn not and in my opinion and believable at all . from his overly do kennedy esque appearance to his constant idealistic waning ( the obvious target be the uneducated audience ) and his authenticity never ring true . and do dozen upon dozen of fbi agent really wade into the mississippi swamp without regard for their expensive suit . well and if they do and perhaps it just show that educate northern white boy aren not that smart after all . finally and if director alan parker intent be to leave u in the lurch regard anderson and mrs. pell relationship and he succeed with fly color . on a positive note and gene hackman performance be excellent . he hold it all together . well and he be the movie . his delivery and mannerism and character make mississippi burn quite enjoyable to watch from a cinematic point of view . also top notch be brad dourif a deputy pell . their performance almost make up for a mediocre and all too often condescend film .