TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD (1962)

Directed by: Robert Mulligan
Written by: Horton Foote
Studio: Universal International Pictures
Starring: Gregory Peck, Mary Badham, Phillip Alford
Rated: Not Rated

About the film:
Six-year-old Scout learns about life and the evils of the world as her father Atticus defends a black man against rape charges in a racially charged Alabama courthouse circa 1932.

Movie Quote:
“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view.”
Atticus Finch (Gregory Peck) in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

Bible Quote:
“To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.”
1 Corinthians 9:22 (NIV)

Commentary:
Atticus Finch was recently named as the number one movie “hero” of all time. The cited quote gives us a good understanding why this character is so esteemed by filmgoers. His expressed view may be simple but it is perfectly aligned with how God would want us to behave and act towards one another.

Scriptures say that “a word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.” It is a beautiful mind picture to help us recognize how important and powerfully beneficial the right words can be when spoken at the right time.

To fitly speak requires that we first take the time to understand a person’s situation before offering counsel or advice. Then, when we speak, we are able to choose the appropriate words of truth that will address the need and hit his or her heart in a way as to give peace, strength or deliverance.

Even with all the mass media communication available today… technology which allows preachers to speak to hundreds of thousands of people simultaneously, nothing will ever impact a person more than words of wisdom and love delivered by an individual who has simply taken the time to get involved in the other’s life.

Questions to consider while watching the film:
1. What does the Bible say about racial prejudice?
2. What lessons can be learned from the character of Boo Radley and how Scout and the other children view him?