To Kill A Mockingbird (1962) - NR
A classic. Though the main characters are white, this film speaks powerfully of how African Americans were treated 70 years ago, particularly in the South. When it came out in the early 1960s, the film also deeply affected audiences because not much had changed between the time of the story's setting and the then-present day. Atticus Finch, played by Gregory Peck, takes on the case of a black man accused of raping a white woman. It is an uphill battle, to say the least. Finch's young daughter Scout is the story's narrator, and her "naive" take on the events affecting her father and his client offer insight that questions the status quo. The film is an adaptation of Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning book of the same name.
Questions for reflections and/or discussion:
- Scout is the narrator for the story. She's very young. Do you think her age allows her to see and understand things that the older characters in the movie can't see or refuse to see?
- There are very few African American characters in this movie. Even though that's the case, how is this movie connected to Black History Month?
- What does the title mean?
Teach with Movies - To Kill A Mockingbird
http://www.teachwithmovies.org/guides/to-kill-a-mocking-bird.html
This site offers parents and teachers study guides, discussion questions and helpful background information to augment the learning process begun in the viewing of movies which are good teaching vehicles. If the film you are looking for is included, as is To Kill A Mockingbird, this can be an excellent learning resource.
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