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 | Injustice

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
Mary Badham	...	Scout
Phillip Alford	...	Jem
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
R.L. Armstrong	...	Man (uncredited)
Bobby Barber	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Jess Cavin	...	Juror (uncredited)
Steve Condit	...	Walter Cunningham Jr. (uncredited)
David Crawford	...	David Robinson - Tom's Son (uncredited)
Jamie Forster	...	Hiram Townsend - Courthouse Steps (uncredited)
Charles E. Fredericks	...	Court Clerk (uncredited)
Jester Hairston	...	Spence Robinson, Tom's Father (uncredited)
Chuck Hamilton	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Kim Hamilton	...	Helen Robinson, Tom's wife (uncredited)
Kim Hector	...	Cecil Jacobs (uncredited)
Colin Kenny	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Nancy Marshall	...	Schoolteacher (uncredited)
Paulene Myers	...	Jesse - Dubose Servant Girl (uncredited)
William H. O'Brien	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Gil Perkins	...	Man in Mob (uncredited)
Hugh Sanders	...	Dr. Reynolds (uncredited)
Barry Seltzer	...	Schoolboy (uncredited)
Kim Stanley	...	Scout as an Adult - Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Jay Sullivan	...	Court Reporter (uncredited)
Kelly Thordsen	...	Burly Mob Member (uncredited)
Max Wagner	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Bill Walker	...	Rev. Sykes (uncredited)
Dan White	...	Mob Leader (uncredited)
Guy Wilkerson	...	Jury Foreman (uncredited)

Directed by
Robert Mulligan

Writing credits
Harper Lee		(novel "To Kill a Mockingbird ")
Horton Foote		(screenplay)

Produced by
Alan J. Pakula	....	producer

Original Music by
Elmer Bernstein

Cinematography by
Russell Harlan		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Aaron Stell

Art Direction by
Henry Bumstead
Alexander Golitzen		(uncredited)

Set Decoration by
Oliver Emert

Costume Design by
Rosemary Odell

Makeup Department
Larry Germain	....	hair stylist
Bud Westmore	....	makeup artist
Franz Prehoda	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Lavaughn Speer	....	hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management
Edward Muhl	....	in charge of production
Ernest B. Wehmeyer	....	production manager
Dick Gallegly	....	assistant production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Joseph E. Kenney	....	assistant director (as Joseph Kenny)
Terry Morse Jr.	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Gene Johnson	....	illustrator (uncredited)
Fred Knoth	....	set coordinator (uncredited)
Frank Nifong	....	props (uncredited)
Julius Rosenkrantz	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
Corson Jowett	....	sound
Waldon O. Watson	....	sound
Michael Colomby	....	sound re-recording mixer: restoration remix (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Andrew Bonello	....	automated image processing (restored version) (uncredited)
Carole Cowley	....	digital mastering restoration producer (uncredited)
Sophia Lo	....	digital restoration: Cinesite (uncredited)
Monty Phillips	....	digital artist (digital restoration) (uncredited)
Antonio Torres	....	digital artist: digital restoration, Cinesite (restored version) (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
William Egan	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Léo L. Fuchs	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Carl Gibson	....	grip (uncredited)
Rollie Lane	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Bill Neff	....	gaffer (uncredited)
Frank Stanley	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Jack Whitman	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Walter Woodworth	....	grip (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Seth Banks	....	wardrobe: men
John Lucas	....	wardrobe: men (uncredited)
Viola Thompson	....	wardrobe: women (uncredited)

Editorial Department
J. Terry Williams	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Other crew
Stephen Frankfurt	....	title designer
Isabel Halliburton	....	assistant to producer
Meta Rebner	....	script supervisor

Production Companies

• Brentwood Productions
• Pakula-Mulligan
• Universal International Pictures (UI)

Distributors

• Universal Pictures (1962) (USA) (theatrical) (as Universal International)
• Universal Pictures (1967) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1968) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• RSS Pictures (2002) (worldwide) (all media)
• Universal Studios Home Video (2003) (Mexico) (DVD)
• Universal Pictures (1963) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Universal Pictures (2001) (Germany) (DVD)

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:

William Windom's movie debut.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Scout asks to see Atticus' watch she stretches her right arm up while she yawns. In the next shot it's down in her lap.

Quotes:

Atticus Finch: Did you rape Mayella Ewell?
Tom Robinson: I did not, sir.
Atticus Finch: Did you harm her in any way?
Tom Robinson: I did not.

Movie Connections:

Featured in 10th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2004) (TV)

It does the book justice.

After studying the outstanding book of To Kill A Mockingbird at school, I viewed this film, and was on the whole very impressed. Scout and Jem are portrayed brilliantly, considering the ages of the children who played them, and they, as with everything else in the production, are true to the book's spirit. Gregory Peck is perfect as the unflappable Atticus Finch, and deserved his Oscar. The music is worthy of praise, especially for the climatic scene, and the raw emotion and feeling of the book is amply conveyed. All of the cast are well cast, and it's interesting to ponder how much this film, at the time, would've shocked. That the book explores racism and outsiders in a southern town, through the eyes of a child is genius and works very nicely here. The only problems are minor- much of the book's counter-balancing humour was left out, certain characters are omitted (Dolphus Raymond and Aunt Alexandra), and some of the book's early characterisation is missed. Aside from these gripes, this is a magical film and a "must-see," as a companion piece to the classic novel. 9/10