To Kill a Mockingbird

Ranked 34 on the American Film Institute's list of the 100 Greatest American Films, 1962's To Kill a Mockingbird is quite simply one of the finest family-oriented dramas ever made. A beautiful and deeply affecting adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Harper Lee, the film retains a timeless quality that remains powerfully resonant in present-day America with its advocacy of tolerance, justice, integrity, and loving, responsible parenthood. It's tempting to call this an important "message" movie that should be required viewing for children and adults alike, but this riveting courtroom drama is anything but stodgy or pedantic. As Atticus Finch, the small-town Alabama lawyer and widower father of two, Gregory Peck gives one of his finest performances with his impassioned defense of a black man (Brock Peters) wrongfully accused of the rape and assault of a young white woman. While his children, Scout (Mary Badham) and Jem (Phillip Alford), learn about the realities of racial prejudice, they also struggle to overcome their fear of the unknown as personified by their mysterious, mostly unseen neighbor Boo Radley (Robert Duvall, in his brilliant, almost completely nonverbal screen debut). What emerges from this evocative, exquisitely filmed drama is a pure distillation of the themes of Harper Lee's enduring novel, captured in a showcase for some of the finest American acting ever assembled, and infused with a rare quality of humanitarian artistry (thanks also to Horton Foote's splendid screenplay and Elmer Bernstein's outstanding score) that seems all but lost in the chaotic morass of modern cinema. Making its third appearance on DVD, the film sports a nice-looking anamorphic widescreen transfer, with DVD extras including audio commentary by director Robert Mulligan and producer Alan Pakula, the feature-length documentary “A Conversation with Gregory Peck” (produced by his daughter Cecilia), a 1999 interview titled “Scout Remembers” with Badham, a 10-minute excerpt from the “Academy Tribute to Gregory Peck,” and more. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. (J. Shannon)[Blu-ray Review—Jan. 31, 2012—Universal, 130 min., not rated, $39.98—Making its first appearance on Blu-ray, 1962's To Kill a Mockingbird features an outstanding transfer and DTS-HD 5.1 sound. Blu-ray extras include a “U-Control” picture-in-picture behind-the-scenes viewing mode narrated by Gregory Peck's children Cecilia and Anthony, audio commentary by director Robert Mulligan and producer Alan J. Pakula, “A Conversation with Gregory Peck” documentary produced by Cecilia Peck (98 min.), a “Fearful Symmetry” making-of documentary (90 min.), “Scout Remembers” with costar Mary Badham (12 min.), Peck's speech on receiving his AFI Lifetime Achievement Award (10 min.), an excerpt from the Academy tribute to Peck (10 min.), “100 Years of Universal: Restoring the Classics” on their latest preservation line (9 min.), Peck's Best Actor Oscar acceptance speech (2 min.), a bonus DVD copy of the film, a booklet, trailers, and the BD-Live function. Bottom line: a beloved classic makes an impressive (and long-awaited) debut on Blu-ray.]