Scout Finch, 6, and her older brother Jem live in sleepy Maycomb, Alabama, spending much of their time with their friend Dill and spying on their reclusive and mysterious neighbor, Boo Radley. When Atticus, their widowed father and a respected lawyer, defends a black man named Tom Robinson against fabricated rape charges, the trial and tangent events expose the children to evils of racism and stereotyping.
Acting
Gregory Peck's closing argument—pure cinematic righteousness.
Direction
Scout's low-angle POV makes adult cruelty feel enormous.
Cinematography
Shadow-drenched Maycomb that feels half-memory, half-nightmare.
Director
Robert Mulligan
Gregory Peck
Atticus Finch
Mary Badham
Scout Finch
Phillip Alford
Jem
John Megna
Dill Harris
Frank Overton
Sheriff Heck Tate
Brock Peters
Tom Robinson
Rosemary Murphy
Maudie Atkinson
Ruth White
Mrs. Dubose
Estelle Evans
Calpurnia
Paul Fix
Judge Taylor
Collin Wilcox Paxton
Mayella Violet Ewell
James Anderson
Bob Ewell
Alice Ghostley
Aunt Stephanie Crawford
Robert Duvall
Boo Radley
William Windom
Mr. Gilmer
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Gregory Peck's grandson is named Harper after Harper Lee; they remained friends until her death.
Lee based Dill on Truman Capote, her childhood neighbor—making this and 'In Cold Blood' mirror-image portraits of American evil.
US
