The film version of To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), which stars Gregory Peck as Atticus and Mary Badham as Scout, is as much a classic as the novel itself. (The film received eight Academy Awards nominations and netted awards for Best Actor, Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium, and Best Art Direction — Set Decoration, Black and White.)
Ideally, a novel and its film version complement each other, which, on many levels, is the case with To Kill a Mockingbird. However, film can accomplish things that novels can’t, and vice versa. Likewise, film has limitations that a novel doesn’t. This essay explores some of the differences between To Kill a Mockingbird, the film and the novel.
