, Research Paper
Of Mice and Men: Review
In this, the third and latest movie version of John Steinbeck?s Of Mice and Men,
screenplay written by Horton Foote and directed by Gary Sinese, the audience is
introduced to a variety of underdogs who are faced with a variety of unfortunate
predicaments. We must first note that the title Of Mice and Men comes from a Robert
Burns poem means ?the best laid schemes of mice and men often go awry?. This theme
follows the plot line through out the movie.
The audience follows two men, George (Gary Sinese) and Lennie (John
Malkovich), through a brief point in time in their lives during the Depression era. Lennie, a
slow-witted man, continually gets into trouble and drags George, Lennie?s friend and
gaurdian figure, along with him. Due to Lennie?s unintentionally harmful actions, he and
George are forced to travel the country to go-nowhere farm jobs. In this movie they wind
up at Tyler Ranch, near Soledad, California.
Just as in all of the other towns George and Lennie had worked at, Lennie winds
up in trouble at this one when he, not-purposely, kills Curley?s wife, a beautiful flirt played
by Sherilyn Fenn. When the men of the ranch decide to go out and find Lennie to kill him
for his crime, George decides that it must be h
killed Lennie, Lennie would have wound up in a mental institute, been killed by the other
workers of the farm, or he would have lived, causing other lives, including George?s, to be
put in danger from his unpredictability.
The words ?And will there be rabbits, George??, said by Lennie, are delightful to
the audience when Geoge tells Lennie about their dream. They plan on living off of ?the
fat of the land?. What Lennie?s favorite thing to do is, is to listen to George tell him about
what it will be like after they get money together to buy their dream. After the movie,
these words wind up haunting the viewers because of the heart-wrenching end: George
tells Lennie of their dream land, while he prepares a gun in order to shoot Lennie, without
his knowing.
Gary Sinese as George and John Malkovich as Lennie are outstanding, due to their
pared-down and believable portrayals of the main characters in Steinbeck?s novel. Gary
Sinese does a wonderful, first-time directorial in this movie. The chronological order of
this film is not completely parallel to that of the novel, but it still achieves the same
in-depth effect. This film is a must see for those who are fans of John Steinbeck, or for
those who just want to see an exquisite film.