A brilliant film that helped define a genre

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

In my experience, this may be the best adaptation of a novel that Hollywood has ever produced, the story having been taken from the novel of the same name by Harper Lee. It's a story about racism in the Depression-era South. It's a coming of age story for young Scout and Jem, who watch their father Atticus doggedly defend a black man accused of beating and raping a young white woman. It features magnificent performances from pretty much the entire cast. Young Mary Badham was actually nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Scout - but then, perhaps surprisingly, she went on to do very little acting. And what can one say about Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch. This may well have been his best performance; when I think of Gregory Peck it's certainly Atticus Finch who comes into my mind. There's an incredible mix of well known names in the supporting cast: Brock Peters, William Windom, Paul Fix and even a very young Robert Duvall. And there really isn't a weak performance among them. Most of the attention around "To Kill A Mockingbird" is usually focused on the performances, and especially Peck, but I want to pay special tribute to the directing.Director Robert Mulligan did a superb job as well, and while he went on to direct a number of other movies, this surely was his finest job. There's a very good pace to this movie. It starts out slowly, painting an almost idyllic picture of life in this small town in the South, focusing on Scout and Jem and their friend Dill. It's summer, school is out and they're just kids having fun. It's a casual and carefree existence, they spend most of their time outside, sometimes getting into mischief, sometimes investigating some of the town's mysteries - one of which revolves around the story of Boo, a local boy supposedly kept chained in his basement by his father. You get the feeling that if there was anyplace you wanted to grow up as a child, it was right here in Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930's - Depression or not. Until Mayella is attacked, and Tom Robinson (a black man) is accused, and Atticus is assigned to defend him. Then the story becomes dark, the racism starts to be seen; the gulf between black and white must be a shock to Scout and Jem, whose exposure to black people to this point has been to friendly Calpurnia, who kept house for their widowed father and looked after them and was more or less part of the family. Mulligan picks up the pace of the movie once the trial starts. The trial proceeds at a frenetic pace - seemingly it all takes place in a single day, which perhaps makes the point that even with Atticus doing his best and making clear the truth of what had actually happened, there was going to be no long consideration of the facts - just a rush to a pre-ordained judgement, followed by a tragedy. Then there's the suspense of what happened to Scout and Jem on their "longest journey" - as the adult Scout (who serves as kind of the narrator) calls it in a voice over. But once that finishes, Mulligan changes the pace again, and the story slows down as the mystery of Boo from the beginning of the movie is revealed, and the film concludes on a very gentle and moving note. Just superb pacing from Mulligan. He was nominated for the Oscar as Best Director in 1963, but lost to David Lean's turn directing "Lawrence of Arabia." Both were fine movies, but I'd have given the nod to Mulligan.You could criticize the movie for downplaying to an extent the reality of racism. It really doesn't give us any glimpse into what it was like to be black in Maycomb - it gives far more of a white perspective on the issue of racism. But that's exactly what the novel was of course - a depiction of life in small town Alabama using Harper Lee's own upbringing as a model. I also thought that the combination of the depiction of small town life (and especially the focus at the beginning and the end on Boo) was perhaps a bit awkwardly combined with the rape trial and the reflection on racism, although Boo himself becomes an example of yet another misunderstood figure in the town. Atticus comes across as almost too good to be true. But, really, there's very little to criticize about this movie, which deserves to be thought of as a classic. (9/10)

This is my very favorite book. Cliched, I know, but it's a classic for a reason. I read it freshman year of high school and immediately fell in love with the story and the characters. We were meant to watch the movie after reading the book, but we didn't get around to it, and at the time, I was glad. At the time, my experience had led me to believe that movie adaptations of good books are rarely good enough to live up to my expectations, and nearly 10 years later, I still believe that when it comes to most books. But after having to watch this movie in a film class in college, I was forced to admit that this is not always the case. This movie is flawless. It perfectly captures the tone and spirit of the book, the casting was absolutely perfect, the score is amazing and well timed, the emotions are real and vivid. This deserves all the accolades it gets and many many more. I only wish I had seen it earlier. While the book continues to be something I come back to time and time again, this is a rare case when I actually feel comfortable watching the movie instead of rereading the book if I want to save time. It's (almost) just as good. It certainly comes closer than any other movie ever did to capturing the subtle perfection of a novel. There's a reason that this is one of the few movies that is this old and Hollywood hasn't yet tried to remake it. I hope they never do.

The most beautiful thing about To Kill a Mockingbird is undoubtfully the cinematography. Shot in black and white, this masterpiece in film noir looks absolutely gorgious. Debt and shadows, compositions and sharpness, I watched in awe.As for the story, in my opinion it took too long before the black man drama began, and it wasn't very good embedded in the movie. The acting is superb, by all members of the cast. I've never seen such a loving father for his children, very moving. Yet, the subject of racial discrimination addressed in the early 1960s is something ashonishing. Robert Mulligan has been extrememly brave to put the novel into a movie. That's what makes this movie American history.

There have been several instances in my life where I am in dire need of something to soothe my soul, I normally recur to the usual things, like going for a walk or perhaps even writing. Other times I simply watch To Kill a Mockingbird. It will draw a smile in me with the first note, and at the last scene a tear. The reason why to Kill a Mockingbird cures my inside is mainly because of a single word: Innocence. In this day and age, these dark times. Like the ones we see in the movie, I believe we all need a drop of innocence on us, but we also need to be strong, we need to be resilient, but above all, we must have justice.In the movie and book, To Kill a Mockingbird means that it is a sin to kill someones innocence/inner peace, because all they do is ''sing'' for us. In a way I have always thought of this as not just that there is a mockingbird in all of us, but that to shoot the beauty and uniqueness of all people on earth has been the one and only sin that we have all committed. This sin may come across in the manifestation of simple thoughts of judgement against peoples actions, personalities or simply physical attributes. Boo Radley is the personification of this situation in the instance of the Novel/Movie. I am applying the situations in this movie to our present day counterparts and situation to explain my most important opinion about the movie: It is Timeless.The historical context of the movie is one of desperation, racism and injustice. But also at times: innocent, playful and hopeful. There is an Atticus Finch, Scout Finch and even Boo Radley in all of us. But the Bob Ewell we all have is also at risk of falling in the desperation and injustice, prejudice and a hate for ourselves and the world that sorrounds us.Atticus Finch brought to life by the one and only Gregory Peck was named AFI's number 1 hero in movie history. A man who will be timeless. His speech at the court is one of the best movie moments in history. Gregory Peck WAS Atticus Finch. All the actors in this movie are completely the way you would imagine them while reading the novel. The compositions by Elmer Bernstein are one of the most beautiful to ever touch the silver screen, and delight our ears. It fills the air with beauty, tension and makes us cry.To Kill a Mockingbird is the greatest film of all time because it isn't perfect, but the message is completely timeless, the world will always go through dire situations because humans tend to be complicated creatures. But there will always be a Mockingbird in all of us, and this movie reminds us of that. I always turn to this movie to find my inner Mockingbird, and to remind me that sometimes, injustice will be present, but the innocence of creatures and the good in mankind will prevail.