To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) ***1/2

Rating: 9/10 (2 February 2005)

Based on the classic novel by Harper Lee, this wholesome adaptation stars Gregory Peck in an Oscar-winning part as Atticus Finch, a righteous defense lawyer during the depression era down South. He's a loving single parent who tries to instill values into his two children, Jem (Philip Alford) and his younger sister "Scout" (Mary Badham). The story is told as a flashback from the perspective of a now-grown Scout (who narrates) during one memorable summer in her youth where her father elected to defend a Negro farmhand named Tom Robinson (Brock Peters). At a time when black people were not well respected in small southern towns, Finch stands alone in his plight to help the innocent young man who has been wrongly accused of raping and beating a white woman. Brock Peters is highly sympathetic as the good-natured Robinson during an unfair courtroom trial, with Gregory Peck as his well-meaning attorney with the odds stacked against him. Fine acting also by young Alford and especially Badham as the children learning about bigotry through their dad in addition to the ongoing trial. Robert DuVall makes his very first motion picture appearance in a small but unforgettable part that remains crucial to the success of the story. ***1/2 out of ****