Unexpectedly great

Rating: 9/10 (19 January 2011)

So I'm sifting through IMDb's top 25 movies and happen upon To Kill A Mockingbird. Being a bit of a movie "know it all". I sit down to watch what I expect to be a black and white courtroom drama where the "hero" wins out and they all live happily ever after.
Could I have been more wrong?
First off it's not a courtroom drama, it has a short courtroom scene but majority of the movie happens from a child's perspective of their fathers court case. Secondly it is black and white but it's bizarre in that having only seen the movie once, 2 days ago, I'm remembering it in colour. Third, it's certainly not a happily ever after movie. It's haunting and has an incredible reality about it.
The performances are solid and very well rounded. There seems to be more to each character than is being revealed here and that fact alone makes me want to pick up the novel and find out more.
It's a shock to find something so old that is so great and so fresh. I loved it. Robert Duvall's entrance is wonderful too!