Page to Screen: To Kill a Mockingbird

The movie version of To Kill a Mockingbird is the rare case of a successful adaptation of a book into a movie. You can find my review of the book here. The movie focuses almost exclusively on the trial of Tom Robinson, which I think was a smart choice. The languid pace of the novel would not work for a movie. It would make the movie way too long and would seem repetitive since the kids do much of the same things every summer.

Gregory Peck won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Atticus Finch. I found him to be outstanding in the role. If Boo Radley looks familiar that’s because he is played by the very young Robert Duvall!

I recommend that you read the book first and then watch the movie. As my fourteen year old son said, “It’s so good that after watching if for a while, I forgot it was in black and white!”