To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

User Rating:

8.5/10   

Director:

Robert Mulligan

Writers:

Harper Lee (novel)
Horton Foote (screenplay)

Release Date:

25 December 1962 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

The most beloved and widely read Pulitzer Prize Winner now comes vividly alive on the screen!

Plot:

Atticus Finch, a lawyer in the Depression-era South, defends a black man against an undeserved rape charge, and his kids against prejudice.

Plot Keywords:

Children | Trial | Lawyer | Alabama | American South

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 11 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

Gregory Peck	...	Atticus Finch
John Megna	...	Charles Baker 'Dill' Harris
Frank Overton	...	Sheriff Heck Tate
Rosemary Murphy	...	Maudie Atkinson
Ruth White	...	Mrs. Dubose
Brock Peters	...	Tom Robinson
Estelle Evans	...	Calpurnia
Paul Fix	...	Judge Taylor
Collin Wilcox Paxton	...	Mayella Violet Ewell (as Collin Wilcox)
James Anderson	...	Robert E. Lee 'Bob' Ewell
Alice Ghostley	...	Aunt Stephanie Crawford
Robert Duvall	...	Arthur 'Boo' Radley
William Windom	...	Mr. Gilmer, Prosecutor
Crahan Denton	...	Walter Cunningham Sr.
Richard Hale	...	Nathan Radley

Runtime:

129 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #20267) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | Iceland:12 | Portugal:M/12 | USA:Not Rated (DVD) | Germany:12 (DVD rating) | Australia:PG | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Finland:K-16 | South Korea:12 | Sweden:15 | West Germany:12 (f)

Filming Locations:

Monroeville, Alabama, USA

Company:

Brentwood Productions

Trivia:

Brock Peters started to cry while shooting the testifying scene, without rehearsing it this way, and Gregory Peck said that he had to look past him, instead of looking him in the eye, without choking up himself.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: While the film is set in 1932, close ups of Scout's "ham" costume clearly show it is constructed from modern fiberglass, a material not available in its current form until 1938.

Quotes:

Calpurnia: That boy is your company. And if he wants to eat up that tablecloth, you let him, you hear? And if you can't act fit to eat like folks, you can just set here and eat in the kitchen.

Movie Connections:

Featured in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Greatest Movies: 10th Anniversary Edition (2007)

One of the most important films of all time

To Kill a Mockingbird is the movie based on the Harper Lee novel of the same name about Scout, Jem and their father, Atticus Finch who is an attorney in a small southern town. It is both a coming of age story about the children as well as a hard-hitting drama, as Atticus defends a black man who is on trial for the rape of a white woman.

This review is not an easy one to write, despite the fact that I have seen this film at least 10 times. The reason it does not come easily is that this is one of the most personally important films I have ever seen and is in my personal `Top Five of All Time'. I'm certain there is nothing that can be said about the film that has not already been repeated a multitude of times, so I guess the best thing to do is explain why the film is so important to me.

I first saw this film several years ago and was so profoundly affected by it that I immediately watched it again. Of course, the defense of a man wrongly accused of a crime is a common story line, but To Kill a Mockingbird stands out as an exceptional example for several reasons. Among them, the date that the film was released: 1962, on the cusp of the civil rights movement in America, and the fact that it takes place in the south in the 1930's. It is also far from the first film to explore the experiences of children and their own personal growth, but To Kill a Mockingbird stands out because of its sheer honesty and natural performances by the child actors portraying these rich characters.

But most of all, this film is special because of Gregory Peck's portrayal of Atticus Finch, a true hero. At the risk of sounding histrionic, my heart aches when I watch him on screen because he is such an incredible man, and is so inherently good. No matter how many times I have seen this film, I smile when I see his interaction with his children, and I well with tears when I see his incredible strength of character. (No easy feat to break through the armor of this cynical film geek who, if given the chance would remake at least a few dozen films with tragic endings.) I was sitting in my car listening to National Public Radio recently the day Gregory Peck died, and I'm not ashamed to admit that I sat and cried hearing the retrospective they offered – mainly because the man who portrayed my own personal cinematic hero was gone, but also because Peck lived his life with the same conviction as his best known role; a fact that makes Atticus Finch all the more tangible. The American Film Institute recently named Atticus Finch the number one hero of all time, a choice I consider both brave and insightful in an age where our heroes generally either wield weapons or have super human physical strength. Atticus Finch fights evil as well, but with his strong moral fiber and his mind.

To Kill a Mockingbird is generally required reading during the course of one's education. If you have not read it, do so. If you have not seen the film, do so; and share it with others. It is an exceptional film that stands the test of time and will remain an important addition to film history for as long as the genre exists.

--Shelly