The director of Robert Mulligan has died. Another good product of this neck of the woods. He is most famous for directing To Kill A Mockingbird, but has also been behind various other very good movies including: The Man in the Moon (Reese Witherspoon's first big break), Same Time, Next Year (sentimental romance), Up The Down Staircase (struggles at an inner city school), and Summer of '42 (coming of age story).
The movie version of To Kill A Mockingbird includes an edited version of Atticus Finch's appeal to the jury from the book, but did not include one of my favorite parts, referenced here:
Later in his speech, Atticus Finch mentions a quote of Thomas Jefferson, “all men are created equal.” He tells the jury that in reality, it is not the case, “we know all men are not created equal … some people are smarter than others, some people have more opportunity because they’re born with it…”. Atticus here appeals to the common sense of the juror that Tom Robinson, being a black man is not viewed as an equal. “But there is one way in this country in which all men are created equal”, Atticus goes on to say that in fact, there’s a “human institution” when all men are created equal; it is the “great reveler”, our court system. Atticus Finch again establishes the mutual understanding with his audience by agreeing with them that yes, in society, there’s no true equality among people. However, Atticus contradicts his statement to show that in a court of law where justice is served, “all men”, including Tom Robinson, are created equal.
The first part, on what "equality" does not mean, provided a nice touch. Of course, Scout saying 'hey' to Mr. Cunningham was great too ... as was many other scenes in that classic. Makes one want to read the book again. Overall, this director provided a good model on how to show a certain time and place with great actors and performances helping along the way.