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.
Universally recognized as a classic, and the label is well deserved.
– James Berardinelli,
ReelViews,
20 Jun 2002
fresh:
Minor shortcomings in a rewarding film.
– Bosley Crowther,
New York Times,
20 May 2003
rotten:
This one is always just off the boil.
– Geoff Andrew,
Time Out,
24 Jun 2006
fresh:
Harper Lee's child's-eye view of southern bigotry gains something in its translation to the screen by Robert Mulligan, who knows exactly where to place the camera to catch a child's subjective experience.
– Dave Kehr,
Chicago Reader,
25 Jul 2011
rotten:
To Kill a Mockingbird is a time capsule, preserving hopes and sentiments from a kinder, gentler, more naive America.