Movie Review Assignment To Kill a Mocking Bird Essay

Movie Review Assignment To Kill a Mocking Bird - Essay Example The story then gravitates to Atticus Finch accepting the charge of Judge Taylor to defend Tom Robinson, a black man accused of assaulting and raping a white woman, Mayella Ewell. Atticus' acceptance of the case creates a stir in their small community, which affects his children somewhat negatively until he explains to them that if he refuses to defend Tom Robinson, he will no longer be able to hold his head up high in their town, meaning that he will no longer be qualified to be a guide as to what is wrong or right. But while Atticus has proven the innocence of his client, he loses his case and Tom Robinson loses heart; Tom tries to escape and is killed. Bob Ewell attacks Jem and Scout afterwards, but they are saved by Boo Radley. The film attempts to portray with accuracy the disparity that existed between the white people and the colored people in the early part of the 20th century. The Jim Crow laws - laws delineating the segregation of the white people from the black people - are fully enforced at the time of the film's setting, which is 1932. It was a difficult time for the African Americans then; they were hardly treated like human beings. They are not allowed to use the same facilities. There are separate water fountains, public transports, theaters, restaurants, libraries and the like for blacks and for whites. They cannot be enrolled in the same school. They cannot intermarry. Blacks cannot be hired for any other jobs other than menial ones in some states. And while they have the right to vote, blacks have to pass certain tests and requirements in order to exercise that right, while the whites are not encumbered by such requirements. Examples of how the Jim Crow laws are applied back then are present in the movie, but while discrimination is one of the themes tackled by the film, the examples are not given jarring emphasis; rather, they blend well in the general flow of the story. One example is that two of the three black characters named in the film are employed in menial jobs. Tom Robinson is a field hand while Calpurnia works as a maid in the Finch household. White people at that time are prohibited from hiring black people except to do menial jobs. Other examples that can be seen in the film are the separate seating arrangement of blacks and whites in the county courthouse, Bob Ewell calling Tom's father "boy" even though the latter obviously looks far older than him, the attitude their society takes on the matter of a white woman having relations with a black man (as implied in the testimonies given by all parties involved during the trial), and the all-white jury that deliberated on the case of Tom Robinson. The all-white jury is probably the very reason why Atticus Finch lost his case, despite the success he achieved in casting the testimonies of the prosecution's witnesses in questionable light, as well as the compelling closing argument he gave to the jury. First, Atticus establishes that the bruises and injuries sustained by Mayella Ewell were mostly on the right side of her face and body, which means that the blows were dealt with the right hand of the assaulter, and that two hands are needed to pin her down. Second, he casts a shadow on Bob Ewell's character, making him seem an illiterate person who is given to rage and violence when drunk. Third, he makes Tom Robinson catch a glass, proving