To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

by Pete Roberts

In 1962 Harper Lee's classic best selling American novel "To Kill A Mockingbird" became a feature film. Director Robert Mulligan and screenwriter Horton Foote adapted the story about a Southern family into one of the finest films to come out of Hollywood. The film looks at the life of a small town lawyer named Atticus Finch (Gregory Peck) and his two children Jean Louise "Scout" Finch (Mary Badham) and Jeremy "Jem" Finch (Phillip Alford). The story encapsulates everyday life in the small town of Maycomb, based on the people Harper Lee knew in Monroeville, AL.

The opening credit sequence is one of the most iconic of all films. We see a small box of trinkets as a small child hums and colors with a crayon on the film's title card. As a marble rolls and hits another one, the warm music by Elmer Bernstein begins. When we hear the narration at the beginning of the film, we know that we're seeing the story through Scout/Harper's eyes.

Set in 1932, we're introduced to the Finch family. We see how the kids see their father - who they call Atticus (based on Harper Lee's own father). Atticus Finch is an honest and good man who teaches his children about right and wrong and instills many great values in them. The story revolves around Scout and Jem but becomes a character study on how Atticus deals with life's problems, including defending a black man named Tom Robinson (Brock Peters) falsely accused of rape by a poor young white woman Mayella "Violet" Ewell (Collin Wilcox Paxton) in town. We can see through the lies that Violet's own father Robert E. Lee "Bob" Ewel - a racist - is the one that actually abused her, leading Violet to lash out at a kind decent man who she's actually affectionate towards.

One of my favorite sequences is when Atticus is alone at the courthouse guarding Tom Robinson when a band of vigilantes arrive to take Robinson away and hang him. Atticus firmly tells the men that they should just turn around and leave, angering them further. When the men refuse, it looks like Atticus is in danger. Suddenly Scout, Jem and Dill show up, and while Atticus orders them to go home, Jem refuses and stays on the stoop by his father. Not knowing what's going to happen, Scout sees a friend of the family and says hello. This changes the whole mood from anger and revenge to sheer innocence from Scout's own outlook on the situation. The danger is diffused and all the men get in their trucks and leave.

Even though Gregory Peck's portrayal of Atticus Finch is outstanding (winning him the Oscar in 1962) Scout and Jem are really the main stars of the film as we share their daily adventures and learn about their childhood curiosities. Their new friend Charles Baker "Dill" Harris (John Megna) is actually based on writer Truman Capote (In Cold Blood) a longtime friend of Harper Lee. The children play together and try to catch glimpses of the mysterious recluse "Boo" Radley who lives on the corner. In one of the films most heartwarming and memorable sequences, the kids finally meet "Boo" face to face, only to find out that he's just a shy, kind person who has cared about them all their lives.

To Kill A Mockingbird is a special film that shows us the innocence and wonder of youth, but also shows us the dark harshness of real life outside our own backyards. The film is on the AFI Top 100 Greatest Films Of All Time and rightfully deserves to be.