Aaron Fawcett Any adaptation that features Aunt Clara alive and well--even though she looks like death--signals trouble from the start. This made-for-T.V. fiasco blundered its way through the entire film. The crowning achievement must have been when the brain trust decided that Steinbeck must have simply omitted giving Curley's wife a name. When Curley called her "Mae" I just about gagged. Sad. Not to mention that Robert Blake and Randy Quaid must not have been allowed to read the novel beforehand. I'm not sure I have anything good to say about this. Pathetic is the only thing close to a compliment I can come up with. It isn't very often that I feel compelled to sign up for an account just so I can comment on a film. There is one positive I can list: this film is such a departure from the novel that when my students wrote a comparison paper dealing with similarities and differences between the different versions we read and/or saw, this version was the easiest for them to use. Why? The filmmakers had to have been trying to make this film the worst piece of cinematic crap ever before created. Move over Ed Wood, you've got company.

gleetroy This is the best version of my favorite novel. Robert Blake is amazing as George. The humanity and depth of feeling he exhibits for Lennie is evident but not overly done. Randy Quaid shows off his wonderful dramatic ability that first became apparent in the big time with "The Last Detail." Those folks who only remember him from the "Vacation" films are in for a surprise.Greta film, great actors Just watch Whitman Mayo (better known as "Grady" from "Sanford and Son"), he is marvelous and he displays talents not often showcased in his career. Great film. Get a tape of if you can (I haven't seen one).

healsrus As someone who's taught Of Mice and Men for years, I have a real affection for this version. Robert Blake is an engaging George and Randy Quaid's Lennie utterly convincing. The conversation between George and Aunt Clara, although only alluded to in the text, is intriguing - and helpful to students. This version also retains the part (first used in the Burgess Meredith version) where George has Lennie lift the cart and then swings on the wheel: simple but effective -rather like Lennie, I suppose!I'm not sure when I became aware of the one element that came to irritate me - but it certainly wasn't on first viewing: the soundtrack music is, I feel, overly sentimental.The final scenes are inventively shot - as is Lennie! - and the audience is given a hint of George's lonely, empty future.I'm searching for a copy (UK) to encourage some debate with students who are familiar with text and with the 1992 Sinise/Malkovitch version. Help welcomed!

snoweer This is the best version of this movie/book. Blake and Quaid both play their parts very well! I'd like to see this again on TV or available for rental. Both characters are tragic and made the more so by the excellent portrayals by these very well-known actors.