Three Screenplays: To Kill a Mockingbird, Tender Mercies and The Trip to Bountiful (Foote, Horton) (Paperback)

by Horton Foote (Author) "It is just before dawn, and in the half-light cotton farms, pinewoods, the bills surrounding Maycomb, and the Courthouse Square are seen..." (more)
Key Phrases: pension check, Tom Robinson, Miss Stephanie, Mother Watts (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Dramatizes a rape trial in a small Southern town, a washed-up country singer's recovery, and an old woman's return to her home.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Grove Press (January 22, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802131255
• ISBN-13: 978-0802131256
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #384,051 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Three screenplays by the Modern American Chekov, April 28, 2002

By	Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

I still remember watching "To Kill a Mockingbird" in the theater, absolutely stunned that the jury had convicted Tom Robinson when it was so clear, so perfectly clear and obvious to even a kid in grade school, that Atticus Finch had proved he was innocent. Horton Foote's screenplay for "To Kill a Mockingbird" is one of three collected in this volume, along with "Tender Mercies" and "The Trip to Bountiful." They represent three different types of screenwriting experiences since the first is adapted form a novel, the second from Foote's own stage play, and the third a work originally conceived as a film. Perhaps it is somewhat ironic that Foote won Oscars for the two adaptations. All three reflect Foote's emphasis on character development and dialogue rather than action and spectacle.

I taught Harper Lee's novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" and screened the movie for an assignment in which students had to compare and contrast the novel with the film. Perhaps the best testament I can give to the quality fo Foote's script is that while students would always come up with favorite scenes from they book they wish had been in the film (number one choice was the hermaphrodite snowman the kids built), there was never a serious argument that Foote had left out something important. For me what stands out is how Foote picked up on one of my favorite parts of the novel, which was the nobility of Jem. The story is primarily about Scout and Atticus, not to mention Boo Radley, but it was Jem who also impressed me, and Foote captures that nobility in several key scenes. If you have a copy of the screenplay, then it is a lot easier to help students with that particular assignment, which always produces solid results.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Book, June 22, 1999

By A Customer

This is a really great book for people who like Foote's work. If you do not especially enjoy reading Foote (or watching his plays), I would not suggest this book. The character devolopment in each of the stories is fanatical and the introductions show what was happening at the time when he wrote each play. Also, you get three plays in one book. For a Foote fan, not much could be better.

0 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Wallmart On-Line, October 8, 2005

By	J. Conine "B Traven" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I never received the product despite desperately trying to correct your error in persisting to consider my two-year's old address current. And because you refuse to have any vital contact with your customers but merely treat them as numbers I've decided never to do business with your Brave New World monolith again. Thanks for nothing. The money I lost due to your policy of disconnectedness from your buyers was well worth the result.