On a Martin Luther King , Jr . Day ( January 16 , 1989 ) episode of ABC 's late-night news program '' Nightline '' , Julian Bond , a social activist and leader in the Civil Rights Movement , nicknamed the film " '' Rambo '' Meets the Klan " and disapproved of its depiction of the FBI : " People are going to have a mistaken idea about that time ... It 's just wrong . These guys were tapping our telephones , not looking into the murders of Goodman , Chaney and Schwerner . " When asked about the film at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival , filmmaker Spike Lee criticized the lack of central African-American characters , believing the film was among several others that used a white savior narrative to exploit blacks in favor of depicting whites as heroes
1989 Cannes Film Festival
1989 Cannes Film Festival
Mississippi Burning