Jonathan Storm of
The Philadelphia Inquirer found it worthy, especially praised and said, "Gossett is barely recognizable as the lean, wizened Mayor O.C. Horn. He and Voigt, as Sheriff Billy Rowles, personify the common-sense intelligence that characterizes much of small-town America." He also added "one of its stars, Louis Gossett Jr., were nominated for NAACP Image Awards, to be presented next month. Costar Jon Voigt is also worthy of a prize."
John Leonard of
New York wrote, "What distinguishes
Jasper, Texas is not inside info...not suspense...and not catharsis...It is performance."
David Wiegand of the
San Francisco Chronicle said, "There's nothing fatally wrong with the film, but the muddled, overstuffed script and sometimes cheesy direction short-circuit the emotional potential of the treatment of James Byrd Jr.'s brutal dragging death five years ago in a small Texas town . . . The better TV films offer commentary and perspective subtly, through careful characterization and plot development.
Jasper, Texas doesn't quite do that. Despite great performances from Voight and Gossett, the film trips over its own simplistic analysis of what 'getting along' between the races really means." Laura Fries of
Variety called the film "an introspective but somewhat Hollywoodized treatment" and continued, "The director's focus is very personal. Although he doesn't linger on details of the court case, the murder is presented in full-color detail. It is handled almost clinically, but not without sensitivity. To dance around the facts would be too great a disservice. To exploit the sensational nature of the crime also would be wrong. Instead, Byrd puts his trust into his very capable cast." Sam Adams of
Philadelphia City Paper thought the film was "a standard-issue
docudrama whose pat resolution doesn't dredge up anything like the national horror of Byrd's murder." ==Awards and nominations==