The Liberation Of L.B. Jones (1970)

A young lawyer (Lee Majors) and his wife (Barbara Hershey) move to Tennessee so he can work in his Uncle's (Lee J. Cobb) law firm. Under his nephew's pressure, the older attorney agrees to represent a wealthy black undertaker (Roscoe Lee Browne) who intends to divorce his wife (Lola Falana) for adultery with a white policeman (Anthony Zerbe). Based on the novel THE LIBERATION OF LORD BYRON JONES by Jesse Hill Ford (who co-wrote the screenplay) and directed by William Wyler (BEN-HUR) in his final film. It's a disappointing swan song for Wyler, a master craftsman. It's the kind of social conscience movie that someone like Stanley Kramer would churn out. It's crude and heavy handed. It makes one appreciate all the more something like IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT which does the same thing but without the hammer. There are some things that stand out like the casual racism of Lee J. Cobb's lawyer and how he attempts to justify it. Two performances stand out: Roscoe Lee Browne in the title role brings a quiet authority to his dignified undertaker and Yaphet Kotto as a young man returning to his hometown to avenge himself. With Chill Wills, Arch Johnson, Brenda Sykes, Eve McVeagh and Fayard Nicholas.