An Alabama lawyer is raising two children alone. In the midst of an economic depression filled with bigotry and hatred, he must defend in court an African-American man falsely accused of rape.

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Mockingbird. The North American singing mockingbird. “Mimus polyglottus” or “Orpheus polyglottus” is our hero’s Latin name. Orpheus and polyglottus is clear, “mimus” is Latin for actor. “Mocking bird” is English for mocking bird. “Pajaro burlon” the mocking bird in Spanish.

Did you know that the mockingbird with its singing often imitates not only the singing of other birds, but also sounds, which it hears near its home – a hen clucking, a dog barking, a cart creaking or a letter carrier’s whistle? And he does it brilliantly! But that is not the only reason why people love a mockingbird. The bird is sociable and trustful by nature, and it seems to people that it wants to live near the man. Sometimes a mockingbird makes a nest in the bushes right near the entrance to the house.

In general, a mockingbird is a harmless and quite harmless bird. It is akin to a good little clown, which is laughed at by everyone, and behind the eyes is called a fool. That’s about right.

– I’d rather have you shooting at tin cans in the vegetable garden, but I know you’ll start hitting birds. If you can hit a jay, shoot them all you want, but remember, it’s a great sin to kill a mockingbird.
It was the first time I’d ever heard Atticus say anything about a sin, and I asked Miss Maudie why it was a sin.
– Your father is right,” said Miss Maudie. – The mockingbird is the most harmless bird, it only sings for our enjoyment. Mockingbirds don’t peck berries in the garden, they don’t nest in the ovaries, they just sing their songs for us. That is why it is a sin to kill a mockingbird.

Lines from Harper Lee’s novel ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.

If you were confused by the title and such a long introduction, I can assure you – you won’t find another word here about bird life from an ornithological perspective. The film, like the source material – a novel by Harper Lee – is about people, about adults and children… And you’ll understand what this bird is about a little later…

So, let’s begin…

At the beginning of the movie, a woman’s voice invites us to listen to her story. The adult female recalls her childhood, her family, her father, her little brother, and shares with us her memories of the events that in those early years had a great influence on the formation of her personality.

And here we see the girl. Nimble, skinny, with thin legs, just a bouncy little goat. Eyesore. That’s her name, the people closest to her. And this is our protagonist, from whom the story is told.

Her brother Jim – a little older, a little more serious, but also not averse to rush through the streets, dizzying, to fight with the boys, climb a tree, to get into some kind of story, good – enough adventures, and around so much interesting!

By the way, an interesting fact: the boy who played Jim – Philip Alford, at first very long did not want to go to try for this role. It was only after his mother told him that he could thus legally be able to skip school, he agreed to go to the audition … Here’s the most convincing motive to love the cinema!

Now let’s imagine their father. Actor Gregory Peck is probably known to everyone, so the external hero is not worth describing. His name is Atticus. Atticus Finch, the lawyer. And he is raising two children by himself. A tragedy has occurred that no one expected. Their beloved mother died when the daughter was two years old. The father was left with a six-year-old son and a tiny baby, Eyeball. And all the care, the trouble of bringing up the children fell on his shoulders.

I must say right away that I haven’t seen another father like this in any movie! Atticus is a real-life example of a Father, a Man with a capital “A”!

I think many of you have heard that Atticus Finch, played by Gregory Peck, is recognized as the most positive character in cinema. When I heard that before I saw the movie, I was a little embarrassed, to be honest. Because the words “the most positive hero” evokes a desire to take a frame, cut it out of cardboard and hang it on the wall. For some reason this title is associated with a flat, monotonous mold, by which serial positive heroes are made. I had assumed a one-sidedness with a departure into the inevitable prohibitive plus, and the very cardboard character. But I’ll say at once, there is none of that! And do not try to find!

Even though I tried to find some negative traits in Finch’s character after watching the movie while thinking about it (Well, how? After all, we don’t have completely positive people in our lives, do we? There has to be some dark place in a person, some hidden wormhole, some modest flaw, right? I couldn’t find any. Well there are no faults in this person! In fact, he is an absolutely positive hero: noble, fair, responsible, wise, brave, courageous, like no one else. But at the same time, the viewer does not feel the pangs of too many positive qualities. Surprisingly so. You look at Atticus and you believe him absolutely, and you realize that it just can’t be any other way! Because that’s what he is. Alive, real, vivid, convincing… And an absolutely luminous man at that!

As a spectator and as a woman, I was shocked by his attitude toward the children! He never once raised his voice to them, let alone teach them with a belt! Even though his son and daughter are both pranksters, brawlers, runaways, and bully beasts! And for all that, his children madly respect, obey, adore and imitate him.

What is his secret? There is no secret by and large. A father raises his children by his own example, by his own life.

And if he says that you can not humiliate the weak, the children see that the father would never allow himself to speak in a dismissive tone with a man below him on the social ladder.

If the father explains why it is wrong to lie, the children are absolutely certain that their father will never lie.

If the father proves that you have to be able to defend your position, if you sincerely believe you are right, then the son and daughter see Atticus doing this daily at work, ignoring the angry shouts of the crowd and without fear of threats.

When hard times come, the father takes responsibility for another man’s life, with his own chest defending the unjustly accused Negro, his client. And the children stand beside him at night in front of a mob of angry drunken men with rifles in their hands, ready to sweep away all in their path. And even that mob retreats before Atticus and the kids. Because he is sure he is right and calm, and therefore inwardly much stronger than all those who have come to judge Lynch.

So the children believe in his rightness, trust him, and are sincerely proud of their father! And he treats them as equals, without sweet cajoling or humiliating condescension. Children are exactly the same people to Atticus. And he respects their world, their feelings and their views. He knows how to point them in the right direction so that the child himself feels who is right and who is wrong, and can find the morally right conclusion on his own. No pressure or moralizing, no burdensome unnecessary educational conversations. At the same time, it is as effective and dignified as possible!

Men, look up to Atticus! I’m not pressuring you, just pointing you in the right direction!

The story of the country, told on behalf of Glasgow through the example of his own life, is true from beginning to end! The imperfection of the judicial system that allows an innocent person to be unjustly condemned, racial problems, and attempts at Ku Klux Klan shenanigans, we see through the eyes of children going into great life, absorbing and analyzing all the information…

Children live their own lives, they have their own dreams and fantasies, their own worries and fears… And it is these very fears that allow Jim and Glazastik to see the world from a different angle. Children’s fears are shown both in the novel and in the film very vividly and psychologically accurate! Surely many of you must have had scary fantasies as children about an imaginary maniac neighbor or a night terrorist – some kind of witch? Such a frightening factor here is the mysterious villain Scarecrow, who lives in a dark, gloomy house next door, whom no one has ever seen, but about whom horror legends are already formed… The nature of children’s fears here is exactly the same as in the emergence of children’s folklore about “Coffin on Seven Wheels,” “Bloodstain on the ceiling” or “Green Heels. You might also think of the bearded old man with a shovel shoveling snow in the movie “Home Alone.” Remember? How did the main character get so terrified at one encounter with him? The nature of childhood fear is in the unconscious desire, roughly speaking, to get the adrenaline rush. It invigorates, it terrifies, it makes the heart race and the pupils dilate… It shakes the body. And children intuitively seek and find this adrenaline.

In this film, a child’s attempt to find their horror movie leads to very serious and important consequences for them. Who is he, this very Scarecrow, whose house is spied on the entire movie by our brother and sister and their friend, a visiting boy? Is he as horrible and dangerous to society as they say he is? Of course not. Where, if not from, does a penknife, a medal, or carved wooden figurines of a boy and a girl appear in their hiding place? The Scarecrow lets the children know that he is not their enemy. Thus, he makes contact, reaches out to them, watches over them, and at the moment when his brother and sister are in real danger, he lunges at the offender and saves the children’s lives!

The image of the Scarecrow is poignant to the point of tears. And even though he appears in the frame at the very end of the film, we see his hunched figure, his helpless hands and the timid look of a cornered animal, and we realize that this man is not quite of this world. He may be a little stunted in development, but, nevertheless, he understands what is good and what is evil, and he saves children!

The film, like the original novel, gives answers to the questions that pop into every child’s mind! And gives unobtrusive advice to any adult who becomes a parent. This movie, in my opinion, is a must-see for family viewing together!

This is a magnificent adaptation of the wise, deep, good novel by the mysterious writer Harper Lee, who is completely closed to communication and has never given a single interview to journalists in her entire life. This is the only work that came out of the pen of the author. Harper has not written another line. But her only novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” was awarded the Pulitzer Prize and was among the best literary works of America, immortalizing the name of the author.

And the film adaptation, directed by Robert Mulligan, took three Oscars, a Globe and a host of other awards and accolades of all kinds.

The acting by Gregory Peck and the kids is beyond praise! In my opinion, this is the best role Peck has ever played!

The music created an indescribable atmosphere, precise in its emotions and feelings, building up the horror the Hitchcockian way where necessary, and underlining the real drama of the situation where necessary.

The director and the cameraman succeeded in conveying all the depth and wisdom of the novel in black and white.

Read the book. Watch the movie. Believe me, they deserve your attention as a reader as well as a viewer!

I hope that the simple, sparrow-like bird “Orpheus polyglottus” – a multi-voiced singer, will build a warm nest in your heart. And you will pass the “Mockingbird” from hand to hand to your children. Because it’s simple and ingenious, and therefore eternal!

Info Blu-ray
Video
Codec: HEVC / H.265 (68.5 Mb/s)
Resolution: Native 4K (2160p)
HDR: HDR10
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1

Audio
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: Dolby Digital 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 2.0
English: DTS 2.0 Mono
Spanish: DTS 2.0 Mono
French: DTS 2.0 Mono
German: DTS Mono
Italian: DTS Mono
Czech: DTS Mono
Japanese: DTS Mono

Note: Spanish = Castilian, French = Parisan

Subtitles
English SDH, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Korean, Mandarin (Traditional), Norwegian, Swedish.