Of Mice and Men (1939)

Directed by

Lewis Milestone

Genre

drama film

Country

United States

Runtime

1h 46m

Rated

PG

Rating

7.3 of 10 from 105 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

Two migrant workers, George and Lennie, drift through the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression. They share a dream of saving enough money to buy their own piece of land. Lennie is a gentle giant with a mental disability who relies on George for guidance and protection. George struggles to keep Lennie out of trouble as their simple plan starts to fall apart.

melancholicearnestslow-burnpoignantgroundedtenseemotional

What happens

Of Mice and Men is a 1939 American drama film based on the 1937 play of the same name, which itself was based on the novella of the same name by author John Steinbeck. The film stars Burgess Meredith, Betty Field, and Lon Chaney Jr., and features Charles Bickford, Roman Bohnen, Bob Steele, and Noah Beery Jr. The film tells the story of two men, George and his intellectually disabled partner Lennie, trying to survive during the dustbowl of the 1930s and pursuing a dream of owning their own ranch instead of always working for others. Starring in the lead roles were relative Hollywood newcomer Burgess Meredith as George and veteran actor Lon Chaney Jr. (the son of famed silent film actor Lon Chaney) as Lennie. Chaney had appeared in more than 50 films by that point in his career, but Of Mice and Men was his first major role. Betty Field's role as Mae was her breakthrough role in film. The film, produced by the Hal Roach Studios and distributed by United Artists, was adapted by Eugene Solow and directed by Lewis Milestone. The film was a critical and commercial success and was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture (Outstanding Production). The musical score was by American composer Aaron Copland. Released on December 30, 1939, it appeared in the 1980s and 1990s in revival theater houses, video and cable, and it earned a following of fans (both audience members and film critics) who praised the movie for its interpretation of the Steinbeck novella. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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