Of Mice and Men (1992)

Movie Analysis Of Mice And Men

1. Discuss the setting (time and place). Explain your answer and give examples.

The story takes place in the 1930s, during the Great Depression, for the most part it’s on a ranch. The men try to make the best of their life on the ranch. At the bunkhouse, the ranch workers try to make some sort of home life. Curley’s wife and Crooks are not allowed to enter the bunkhouse. Curley’s wife is disallowed because she’s a woman and Crooks may not enter because he has a dark skin colour. Crooks room is in the barn. Lennie and Crook have a conversation there, that conversation makes it clear to us (“the viewers”) how terrible loneliness can be. He tells Lennie that he has to live there because he is black.

1. Why does Curley attack Lennie in the bunkhouse? Describe what happens and explain Curley’s reasons.

During the movie, it’s explained that Curley hates big guys. Lennie is quite a big guy, therefore Curley already dislikes him. The reason Lennie is attacked by him is that Curley believed that Lennie was laughing at him. As Curley said in the movie: “No big son of a bitch is going to laugh at me”.

1. "I seen hundreds of men come by on the road an' on the ranches, with their bindles on their back an' that same damn thing in their heads. Hundreds of them. They come, an' they quit an' go on; an' every damn one of 'em's got a little piece of land in his head. An' never a God damn one of 'em ever gets it. Just like heaven.”

Why, according to Crooks, do these men never achieve their dream of buying a piece of land?

Crooks believes their plan is nothing more than a dream. He’s seen hundreds of men that had the same plans as them, none of them ever achieved the goal of getting their land. Unlike Lennie, who is unaware of most things, Crooks knows about the economic state of the U.S. during the Great Depression. It’s very unlikely a worker can save enough money to buy a piece of land; he thinks Lennie and George’s plans are impossible to achieve, or as he said, “nuts”.

1. Foreshadowing gives the audience hints or signs about the future. It suggests what is to come through imagery, language, and/or symbolism. It does not directly give away the outcome, but rather suggests it.

                How is Lennie’s death “foreshadowed”?  

The death of Lennie is foreshadowed in multiple ways. Slim thinks that a creature that is too weak to survive in this hard world must be killed. He drowned 4 of his dog’s puppies because the mother of the puppies wouldn’t be able to feed all of them. Lennie is shown as a weak and dumb or incapable character. It’s further foreshadowed by the shooting of Candy’s dog. The dog had grown old and weak. Candy tells George that he’d rather have killed his dog himself, instead of having someone do it for him, this is a reference to George’s decision to kill Lennie himself. George was his greatest friend, so he killed him himself. Those are the ways Lennie’s death was foreshadowed.

1. Discuss the relationship between George and Lennie. Say something about their characters and their friendship. What is it that unites them? Discuss George’s actions at the end of the story. How can we understand his decision? What do you think about it?

George and Lennie are friends. While George is intelligent and weak, Lennie has a mental disability and is very strong. Lennie often gets into trouble due to his inability to control his strength, the accidents he gets into costs George job stability and independence. Despite this, George continues to be Lennie’s caretaker. Both of them have the dream of getting land, a few acres, where they’ll tend to their animals and live in a house. They’re trying their best to achieve this dream, though it seems impossible due to the country’s financial state (Great Depression). At the end of the story, George kills Lennie. I understand why he did it and believe this action was justified. Lennie tended  to accidentally kill things by petting them too hard, this time, however, he killed a human being, which he had never done before. George could have helped Lennie escape, but he didn’t intend to. He wanted to give him a painless death, like how Candy’s dog was killed with a single shot. I believe George realised that Lennie was a danger to society and could kill others if he were to live in freedom. Though tragic, his decision was justified.

1. Loneliness is an important theme throughout the story. Explain Curley’s wife’s loneliness and how this influences her actions.

Curley’s wife is unhappy with her marriage to Curley. She is the only woman on the ranch, making her lonely. She knows that she’s good-looking and wishes to be admired, but the workers avoid her at all costs, they don’t want any trouble with Curley. She has an unrealistic dream of going to Hollywood and acting in movies.