Delayed Reaction: Of Mice and Men

Premise: Two farm hands try to stay out of trouble at their new job for long enough to accomplish their dream of buying their own farm.

 

Of Mice and Men is an easy story to adapt although there’s one big landmine to avoid. It all hinges on the Lennie performance. If the actor goes too big or too mentally handicapped it can torch the rest of the movie. Otherwise, the story is straightforward with simple and immediate themes. That’s why it’s been so popular as school reading for so many years. This version handles it all pretty well. Lon Chaney Jr. captures the simplicity and gentility of Lennie and stops before it becomes a cartoon. Burgess Meredith does equally as well with George. That can be a tricky role too, since George has to constantly berate Lennie without ever seeming mean. This story favors a classical film production style since it is pretty melodramatic. I don’t have the best memories of the 1992 version because I felt like it had too modern a lens on the story. This version is as good as I think anyone well get on film. That ending hits just as hard as it’s supposed to.

 

Verdict: Weakly Recommend