Hurry Sundown: Otto Preminger, Baton Rouge, and Race, 1966–1967

By the time he began filming Hurry Sundown in 1966, independent producer-director Otto Preminger was already well-known for a series of controversial films that had successfully challenged existing censorship conventions. Working largely with local newspaper archives, this essay documents the difficulties Preminger faced while filming this racially-charged best seller on location in Louisiana. The negative critical reaction which greeted the film at the time of its release is analyzed within the context of the ongoing American Civil Rights movement.