To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

Director:

Robert Mulligan

Writers:

Harper Lee (novel)
Horton Foote (screenplay)

Release Date:

16 March 1963 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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 | 1930s

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 11 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

Gregory Peck	...	Atticus Finch
John Megna	...	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	...	Bob Ewell
Alice Ghostley	...	Aunt Stephanie Crawford
Robert Duvall	...	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)
Danny Borzage	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Jess Cavin	...	Juror (uncredited)
Steve Condit	...	Walter Cunningham Jr. (uncredited)
David Crawford	...	David Robinson (uncredited)
Jamie Forster	...	Hiram Townsend - Courthouse Steps (uncredited)
Charles 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)
Michael Jeffers	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Dick Johnstone	...	Courtroom Spectator (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)
Arthur Tovey	...	Man Leaving Courtroom (uncredited)
Max Wagner	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Bill Walker	...	Reverend 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
Frank 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)
Charles R. Scott Jr.	....	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
Charlie Cohn	....	sound (uncredited)
James Curtis	....	sound (uncredited)
James V. Swartz	....	sound (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Don Wolz	....	special effects (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)

Music Department
Jack Hayes	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Leo Shuken	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Stephen Frankfurt	....	title designer: main titles
Isabel Halliburton	....	assistant to producer
Meta Rebner	....	script supervisor
Jerry Ansell	....	titles assistant (uncredited)
Don Morgan	....	unit publicist (uncredited)
Mark Shaw	....	titles assistant (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Universal International Pictures (UI) (as a Universal-International presentation)
• Pakula-Mulligan (as A Pakula-Mulligan, Brentwood Productions Picture)
• Brentwood Productions (as A Pakula-Mulligan, Brentwood Productions Picture)

Distributors

• Universal Pictures (1962) (USA) (theatrical) (as Universal International)
• Universal Pictures (1963) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Väinän Filmi (1963) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Universal Pictures (1967) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1968) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Universal Pictures (2001) (Germany) (DVD)
• RSS Pictures (2002) (worldwide) (all media)
• Egmont Entertainment (2003) (Finland) (DVD) (1-disc edition)
• Universal Studios Home Video (2003) (Mexico) (DVD)
• Universal Pictures Finland Oy (2005) (Finland) (DVD) (2-disc edition)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (2009) (Finland) (TV)
• Giangiacomo Feltrinelli Editore (2010) (Italy) (DVD)
• Universal Studios Home Entertainment (2012) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray) (50th Anniversary Edition) (Universal's 100th Anniversary)
• Turner Classic Movies (TCM) (2012) (USA) (theatrical)
• Universal Pay Television (????) (USA) (TV) (An MCA Company)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

129 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Australia:PG | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Finland:K-16 | South Korea:12 | Sweden:15 | West Germany:12 (f) | USA:Approved (PCA #20267) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | Iceland:12 | Portugal:M/12 | USA:Not Rated | Germany:12 (DVD rating) | USA:TV-PG (TV rating)

Filming Locations:

Courthouse Square, Backlot, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Trivia:

Robert Mulligan's way of handling his child actors was to let them play together while keeping the cameras as unobtrusive as possible.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: There isn't a mountain within 200 miles of South Alabama where the film takes place. However, mountains are clearly visible as part of the landscape in several shots throughout the movie.

Quotes:

[testifying]
Tom Robinson:Well, I said I best be goin', I couldn't do nothin' for her, an' she said, oh, yes I could. An' I asked her what, and she said to jus' step on the chair yonder an' git that box down from on top of the chifforobe. So I done like she told me, and I was reachin' when the next thing I know she... grabbed me aroun' the legs.
[a murmur erupts in the courthouse]
Tom Robinson:She scared me so bad I hopped down an' turned the chair over. That was the only thing, only furniture 'sturbed in the room, Mr. Finch, I swear, when I left it... Mr. Finch, I got down off the chair, and I turned around an' she sorta jumped on me. She hugged me aroun' the waist. She reached up an' kissed me on the face. She said she'd never kissed a grown man before an' she might as well kiss me. She says for me to kiss her back.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Stephen King's Dead Zone: The House (#1.6)" (2002)

One of the most important films of all time

To Kill a Mockingbird is the movie based on the Harper Lee novel of the same name about Scout, Jem and their father, Atticus Finch who is an attorney in a small southern town. It is both a coming of age story about the children as well as a hard-hitting drama, as Atticus defends a black man who is on trial for the rape of a white woman.

This review is not an easy one to write, despite the fact that I have seen this film at least 10 times. The reason it does not come easily is that this is one of the most personally important films I have ever seen and is in my personal `Top Five of All Time'. I'm certain there is nothing that can be said about the film that has not already been repeated a multitude of times, so I guess the best thing to do is explain why the film is so important to me.

I first saw this film several years ago and was so profoundly affected by it that I immediately watched it again. Of course, the defense of a man wrongly accused of a crime is a common story line, but To Kill a Mockingbird stands out as an exceptional example for several reasons. Among them, the date that the film was released: 1962, on the cusp of the civil rights movement in America, and the fact that it takes place in the south in the 1930's. It is also far from the first film to explore the experiences of children and their own personal growth, but To Kill a Mockingbird stands out because of its sheer honesty and natural performances by the child actors portraying these rich characters.

But most of all, this film is special because of Gregory Peck's portrayal of Atticus Finch, a true hero. At the risk of sounding histrionic, my heart aches when I watch him on screen because he is such an incredible man, and is so inherently good. No matter how many times I have seen this film, I smile when I see his interaction with his children, and I well with tears when I see his incredible strength of character. (No easy feat to break through the armor of this cynical film geek who, if given the chance would remake at least a few dozen films with tragic endings.) I was sitting in my car listening to National Public Radio recently the day Gregory Peck died, and I'm not ashamed to admit that I sat and cried hearing the retrospective they offered – mainly because the man who portrayed my own personal cinematic hero was gone, but also because Peck lived his life with the same conviction as his best known role; a fact that makes Atticus Finch all the more tangible. The American Film Institute recently named Atticus Finch the number one hero of all time, a choice I consider both brave and insightful in an age where our heroes generally either wield weapons or have super human physical strength. Atticus Finch fights evil as well, but with his strong moral fiber and his mind.

To Kill a Mockingbird is generally required reading during the course of one's education. If you have not read it, do so. If you have not seen the film, do so; and share it with others. It is an exceptional film that stands the test of time and will remain an important addition to film history for as long as the genre exists.

--Shelly