Hey, Boo: Harper Lee and 'To Kill a Mockingbird' (2010)

77% of critics liked it
(31 reviews)
81% of users liked it
(191 ratings)

Fifty years after winning the Pulitzer Prize, To Kill a Mockingbird remains a beloved bestseller and quite possibly the most influential American novel of the 20th Century. Nearly one million copies are sold each year and the novel has been translated into more than forty languages worldwide. The… More Fifty years after winning the Pulitzer Prize, To Kill a Mockingbird remains a beloved bestseller and quite possibly the most influential American novel of the 20th Century. Nearly one million copies are sold each year and the novel has been translated into more than forty languages worldwide. The film version, starring Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch, won a trio of Academy Awards, and the U.S. Postal Service's new stamp honoring Peck depicts him wearing glasses, as Finch. Behind it all was a young Southern girl named Nelle Harper Lee, who once said that she wanted to be South Alabama's Jane Austen. Hey, Boo explores Lee's life and unravels some of the mysteries surrounding her, including why she never published again. Containing never-before-seen photos and letters and an exclusive interview with Lee's sister, Alice Finch Lee, the film also brings to light the context and history of the novel's Deep South setting and the social changes it inspired after publication. Oprah Winfrey, Tom Brokaw, Anna Quindlen, Rosanne Cash, Wally Lamb, Richard Russo, Scott Turow, Andrew Young and others reflect on the novel's power, influence, and popularity, and the many ways it has shaped their lives. --(c) First Run Features

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 22 min.
Directed By: Mary Murphy
Genres: Documentary, Special Interest

In Theaters: May 13, 2011 Limited
On DVD: Jul 18, 2011
Studio: First Run Features

Critic Reviews

Stephanie Merry, Washington Post
Between interviews about the merits and courage of the novel and clips from the 1962 film adaptation that earned Gregory Peck an Academy Award, Mary McDonagh Murphy's directorial debut offers up a few morsels of fresh material.
Mark Feeney, Boston Globe
Here's a riddle. Why is any documentary about Harper Lee like a doughnut? Because both have a hole in the middle.
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
Harper Lee hasn't been interviewed in 47 years, but this meditation on her only novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, puts you inside her skin.
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor
It would have been wonderful if Lee had consented to an interview for this documentary, but at least we have, among many others, her 99-year-old sister Alice.
Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter
Fascinating documentary about the reclusive author and her sole literary masterpiece.
Ronnie Scheib, Variety
An unremarkable docu.
Sarah Boslaugh, Playback:stl
Murphy seems determined above all to respect Lee's desire for privacy, making her a sort of anti-Errol Morris.
Tricia Olszewski, Washington City Paper
Not the most accomplished of documentaries, but it's amiable enough.
Chuck Bowen, Slant Magazine
Hey, Boo is so appealing because it's obviously and undeniably a work of commitment and passion.
Robin Clifford, Reeling Reviews
...a lovingly told biography that is well-crafted, informative and entertaining - all things that a good documentary should be.
Laura Clifford, Reeling Reviews
...more a celebration of a book and its movie adaptation than a biographical documentary...Passages are read and we marvel at just how many great moments are there to be found.
Marshall Fine, Hollywood & Fine
It's always nice to see a movie that values literature and literacy - and this is one of the better ones.
Ethan Alter, NYC Film Critic
While entirely pleasant viewing, it's worth noting that Hey Boo isn't particularly distinguished filmmaking.
Nora Lee Mandel, Film-Forward.com
Informative background on birth of the book. . .with overflowing love and respect bestowed on [Lee] from family, friends, and famous fans [and] reverentially about the film.
Avi Offer, NYC Movie Guru
Well-edited and captivating with easily digestible information albeit sans surprising revelations.
Mike Scott, Times-Picayune
Even if Hey, Boo falls short as a piece of revelatory filmmaking, it succeeds nicely as a love letter to Lee's novel.
David Noh, Film Journal International
The book we all had to read in school is given the full reverential treatment in this worshipful documentary.
Kam Williams, NewsBlaze
A fitting tribute to a true American icon, a half century after she subtly helped shape the course of history while leaving an indelible mark on the country's conscience.

Read all 18 critic reviews

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Randy T

With Harper Lee politely declining to be interviewed director Mary Murphy had to rely on the recollections of friends and associates to piece together this interesting but somewhat anticlimactic documentary about one of America's most beloved authors.

Cast

            Jennifer Laird White as Voice

            Jane Beasley as Voice

            Bob Mayer as Voice

            Christopher Seward as Voice

            Donna Coney Island as Voice

            Mary Badham
            
            Tom Brokaw
            
            Rosanne Cash
            
            Oprah Winfrey
            
            Andrew Young
            
            Richard Russo
            
            Mark Childress
            
            Allan Gurganus
            
            Scott Turow
            
            James Patterson
            
            Anna Quindlen
            
            Adriana Trigiani
            
            James McBride
            
            Michael Brown
            
            Boaty Boatwright
            
            Rick Bragg
            
            Joy Brown
            
            Reverend Thomas Lane Butts
            
            Jane Ellen Clark
            
            David Kipen
            
            Wally Lamb
            
            Alice Finch Lee
            
            Diane McWhorter
            
            Jon Meacham
            
            Lizzie Skurnick
            
            Lee Smith
            
            Mary Tucker
            
See full cast