Variety Movie Guide 2000
\nEdited by Derek Elley; A Perigee Book, Copyright 2000<\/p>\n
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD
\n1962, 129 minutes, US b\/w
\nDir Robert Mulligan Prod Alan J. Pakula Scr Horton Foote
\nPh Russell Harlan Ed Aaron Stell Mus Elmer Bernstein
\nArt Henry Bumstead<\/p>\n
Act Gregory Peck, Mary Badham, Phillip Alford, John Megna,
\nRobert Duvall, Brock Peters (Universal)<\/p>\n
Harper Lee’s highly regarded first novel has been artfully and delicately translated to the screen.
\nHorton Foote’s trenchant screenplay, Robert Mulligan’s sensitive and instinctively observant direction
\nand a host of exceptional performances are all essential threads in the rich, provocative fabric.<\/p>\n
As it unfolds on the screen, To Kill A Mockingbird bears with it, oddly enough, alternating overtones
\nof Faulkner, Twain, Steinbeck, Hitchcock, and an Our Gang comedy. A telling indictment of racial
\nprejudice in the Deep South, it is also a charming tale of the emergence of two youngsters from
\nthe realm of wild childhood fantasy to the horizon of maturity, responsibility, compassion and social
\ninsight.<\/p>\n
It is the story of a wise, gentle, soft-spoken Alabama lawyer (Gregory Peck) entrusted with the
\nformidable dual chore of defending a Negro falsely accused of rape while raising his own impressionable,
\nimaginative, motherless, children in a hostile, terrifying environment of bigotry and economic depression.<\/p>\n
For Peck, it is an especially challenging role, requiring him to project through a veneer of civilized
\nrestraint and resigned, rational compromise the fires of social indignation and humanitarian concern
\nthat burn within the character. He not only succeeds, but makes it appear effortless, etching a
\nportrayal of strength, dignity, intelligence. But by no means in this entirely, or even substantially
\nPeck’s film. Two youngsters just about steal it away, although the picture marks their screen bows.
\nBoth nine-year-old Mary Badham and 13-year-old Phillip Alford, each of whom hails from the South,
\nmake striking debuts as Peck’s two impressible, mischievous, ubiquitous, irresistibly childish children.<\/p>\n
There are some top-notch supporting performances. Especially sharp and effective are Frank Overton,
\nEstelle Evans, James Anderson and Robert Duvall. Brock Peters has an outstanding scene as the
\ninnocent, ill-fated Negro on trial for his life.<\/p>\n
1962: Best Actor (Gregory Peck), Adapted Screenplay, B & W Art Direction<\/p>\n
Nominations: Best Picture, Director, Supp Actress (Mary Badham), B&W Cinematography,
\nOriginal Music Score<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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