To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

Written by Horton Foote

Directed by Robert Mulligan

1998 List Ranking: 34

2007 List Ranking: 25

Like most students, I was introduced to To Kill a Mockingbird sometime in High School, where I had to read it for English class. I enjoyed the book, and have read it once more since then, while on a trip to Austria in 2006. I still own that copy, but since it’s been so long since I’ve read it, before watching this well-known (and beloved) film adaptation, I probably couldn’t tell you a lot of the different plot points beyond some generalizations. As such, I couldn’t tell you just how faithful the film To Kill a Mockingbird is to its source material, but I suspect it’s closer than not, although as with most book-to-film adaptations, I think something gets a little lost in translation.

Tom Robinson (Brock Peters) is defended by Atticus Finch (Gregory Peck)

Set in a small town in Alabama in the 1930’s, To Kill a Mockingbird focuses on the Finch family: Atticus, a widowed lawyer, bringing up his two children, Jem and his younger sister Scout. It’s a sort of idealized family…Atticus doesn’t raise his voice, the kids are naturally curious and seem to have no set boundaries or curfews, and deep, meaningful life lessons are always just around the corner. The kids begin to mature when Atticus is assigned to defend a Black man, Tom Robinson, who is accused of raping a White woman. The town’s underlying racism begins to rear its head and the children soon learn that the world is not as tranquil as they once believed.

And oh yeah, a creepy guy named Boo Radley lives across the street from them and the kids are high-key obsessed with him. That’s important too.

Gregory Peck

When considering the acting performances in the film, Gregory Peck as Atticus is most remembered, and indeed this role has seemed to define his entire career. I’ve seen him in only one other film, Gentleman’s Agreement from 1947, and I greatly enjoyed his performance in both that film and this one. It would be all too easy to turn Atticus into a sort of Mr. Rogers caricature, always knowing the right thing to say or do. Peck does indeed embody Atticus with some of that, but there are also moments when the audience can see inner turmoil or heavily applied restraint. Take, for instance, the scene in which Bob Ewell spits in Atticus’ face. Peck, as Atticus, visibly but nonverbally travels through a range of emotions, even taking the smallest of lurches forward, as if to strike Ewell. Seeing Jem in the front seat of the car seems to be one of the biggest restraints on Atticus, determined to always show his children what is right. It is definitely a masterclass of acting, and Peck is rightfully admired for it.

Calpernia (Estella Evans) scolds Scout (Mary Badham)

The other roles are also filled with great actors, especially the three children: Mary Badham, Phillip Alford, and John Megna, all of whom made their film debuts here. Bedham is the point of view character for the film, and she does a great job of hitting the different emotions that Scout journeys through. Three other performances in the film, while relatively small, are also excellent: Estelle Evans as the Finch’s maid Calpernia, Collin Wilcox as Mayella, the woman whose rape sparks the central trial of the film, and Brock Peters as Tom Robinson, the man standing accused at the trial. All three roles are quite minuscule (Evans’ Calpernia is the only one of them to appear in multiple scenes or sequences), but they each left a small impact on me. Evans is quite maternalistic and caring, and so much of her greatness comes from what she doesn’t say (although her scolding Scout on her manners when a poor child comes to have dinner with the family is a classic scene). Wilcox only really has one active scene in the trial sequence, but her performance, while a little insane, has a great power, particularly her final speech. Finally, Peters is likewise fairly quiet and stoic throughout the trial, but his turn on the witness stand, attempting to save his life but still unwilling to paint a White woman in a negative light, is a sight to behold.

Atticus cross-examines Mayella (Collin Wilcox)

Watching the trial sequence really made me think back to the beginning of this AFI list, to 1915’s The Birth of a Nation. There, the racism against Blacks was overt, with one of their sole desires being to assault and rape White women. Here we are, nearly 50 years later, and To Kill a Mockingbird rails against that stereotype. Atticus tells the jury that this stereotype is actually flipped, with the White woman (Mayella) attempting to seduce a Black man against his own wishes. I wouldn’t venture so far as to say that this film forgives that awful racist trash from 1915 (I think that, ultimately, there is no forgiving it), but it was definitely interesting to see how progressive views had changed in that time (and, also, to consider its historical contexts, with To Kill a Mockingbird being released in the middle of the civil rights movement).

Boo Radley (Robert Duvall) revealed

If I have to fault the film for something beyond its occasionally sickeningly-sweet sentimentality (seriously, despite the central conflict, the rest of the film just feels a little TOO quaint), it would be its misbalancing of its different plot points. The central plot is the trial of Tom, but a major subplot involves recluse Boo Radley. Now, before I go any further, I want to reiterate that it has been 14 years since I’ve read the book, so some of the problems I mention might just stem from the book itself, but, if that’s the case, I also don’t excuse the film for failing to correct those missteps. Now then, as I mentioned, Tom’s trial, and its aftermath, becomes the primary plot of the film, but only after taking time to set up, and occasionally reinforce, the importance of Boo Radley. He is made to seem like he going to be a big deal in the narrative of the film…and then the film forgets him while the trial sequence plays out. Suddenly, he finally makes an appearance at the tail end of the film in a way that just feels…off. Like, after the ending of Tom’s plot (in which (SPOILER ALERT) we learn that Tom, after having been found unjustly guilty, has been killed (also, in a way that makes it Tom’s fault that he’s dead…what a way to let the White people off the hook)), it feels like the story is over. Suddenly the Boo Radley plot leaps to the front again, and it almost feels as if the story is restarting all over again. Again, this might be an issue the book has as well, but by the time Boo appears on screen (in seriously the most creepy and implausible way imaginable), I simply don’t care about that plot anymore.

These issues are, admittedly, nitpicking. To Kill a Mockingbird has long been a classic in schools, and continues to garner attention over it constantly being threatened with being removed. Likewise, the film version is a classic as well, if not solely for Gregory Peck’s memorable leading performance. As hokey as it sometimes feels, To Kill a Mockingbird really does offer some fantastic life lessons, even some that I have had to learn for myself (and sometimes, more than once). I think it deserves all the praise it garners, because when stripped right down to them, its messages are excellent truths to live by.

FINAL GRADE: A-