Search - Jasper, Texas on DVD

MPAA Rating: R Content Advisory: Graphic Violence, Adult Situations, Profanity Movie Release: 2003 DVD Release: 02/03/2004 Format: DVD - Closed Captioned Audio Tracks: English, Spanish SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 54 mins Studio: Showtime Entertainment Members Wishing: 0 Genres: Drama, Docudrama, Social Problem Film

The time: June 1998. The place: The sleepy town of Jasper, TX. Three young, self-styled white supremists overpower a 49-year-old black man named James Byrd Jr., chain him to the back of their pickup, and literally drag him to death. What follows is a media firestorm, exacerbated by scores of network and cable-TV news services, the grim pronouncements of so-called pundits, and the intrusion upon Jasper of several extremist activists, ranging from members of the Ku Klux Klan to the newly formed Black Panthers. As the frenzy continues, the heretofore peaceful, if somewhat tenuous, relationship between the white and black residents of Jasper is severely strained, with echoes of past racism resounding throughout the area. In the center of the controversy are two decent, hard-working public servants: R.C. Horn, the first black mayor of Jasper, and Billy Rowles, the town's white sheriff. Also profoundly affected by the appalling murder of Byrd are the respective parents of the victim and the killers. Happily, when the dust clears, justice is done (two of the murderers are condemned to death, the third sentenced to life imprisonment), and, instead of being wrenched apart, the black and white communities of Jasper draw closer together than they have ever been. Made for cable TV, this feature-length reenactment stars Louis Gossett Jr. as Horn and Jon Voight as Rowles. Although certain liberties are taken (the actor playing Byrd is clearly much younger than his real-life counterpart and the Black Panthers and KKK are incorrectly shown descending upon Jasper the same day), the film is, by and large, accurate. Better still, there is a minimum of preaching and proselytizing. Previewed at the Philadelphia Film Festival, Jasper, Texas was given its official Showtime network cable premiere on June 8, 2003 -- almost five years to the day after Byrd's death. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Jon Voight - Billy Rowles
Louis Gossett, Jr. - R.C. Horn
Joe Morton - Walter Diggles
Emily Yancy - Stella Byrd
Bokeem Woodbine - Khalid X

Jeff Byrd's Jasper, Texas, based on the infamous murder of a black man in the title town, makes its debut on DVD with a standard full-frame transfer that preserves the original broadcast aspect ratio of 1.33:1. English soundtracks are rendered in Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby Digital Stereo, while a Spanish soundtrack has been recorded in Dolby Digital Mono. Supplemental materials include a making-of featurette, as well as interviews with and filmographies of the cast and crew. This is a fine title from Showtime Entertainment. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide