Having never read the book and seeing it for the first time almost twenty-eight years after its release, I can only approach this movie from the perspective of a filmmaker and audience participant.
Everything about 'of Mice and Men' from a film and production value is great, for the most part, the story and transitions are smooth but several bump points are really harsh.
I wasn't certain exactly sure how this story was going to unfold, and the fact that I am watching it in 2019, a time is US History where any use of the N-Word, historical or otherwise by anyone who isn't black, it seemed a little to close to the triggers of the political culture of this generation. At the same time, it did help set the historical time line that the story was supposed to have occurred in.
This film left me unsure of how to feel about it as a whole, and that is very rare. I like the story's focus on friendship and commitment to friendship which even plays out in its final act. At the same time there is a part of me that just didn't care by the time it wrapped up.
I think my ambivalence towards the conclusion was at least in part due to the lack of empathy and numbness of the character George towards the actions of his friend. The set-up that occurred with the dog that was put down earlier also seemed numb, unsympathetic, and callous.
This set-up for the resolution with the putting down of the old dog really seemed out of place, a harsh "bump point" of story transition, it seemed forced.
It isn't until the final scene and how it unfolds that I made the connection of this part of the story, in which, unlike the old man who allowed someone else to put down his old dog and then regretted it, George makes a similar decision.
These two parts of the story are its worst points for me, because they force a moral decision about life and death, the value of life, the influence of others choices on life and death and whether or not those with mental challenges should be accountable for their actions.
Ultimately, I came away simply not caring at all about this story, its attempt to force moral conclusions and outcomes and its sense of empathy.
Everything about 'of Mice and Men' from a film and production value is great, for the most part, the story and transitions are smooth but several bump points are really harsh.
I wasn't certain exactly sure how this story was going to unfold, and the fact that I am watching it in 2019, a time is US History where any use of the N-Word, historical or otherwise by anyone who isn't black, it seemed a little to close to the triggers of the political culture of this generation. At the same time, it did help set the historical time line that the story was supposed to have occurred in.
This film left me unsure of how to feel about it as a whole, and that is very rare. I like the story's focus on friendship and commitment to friendship which even plays out in its final act. At the same time there is a part of me that just didn't care by the time it wrapped up.
I think my ambivalence towards the conclusion was at least in part due to the lack of empathy and numbness of the character George towards the actions of his friend. The set-up that occurred with the dog that was put down earlier also seemed numb, unsympathetic, and callous.
This set-up for the resolution with the putting down of the old dog really seemed out of place, a harsh "bump point" of story transition, it seemed forced.
It isn't until the final scene and how it unfolds that I made the connection of this part of the story, in which, unlike the old man who allowed someone else to put down his old dog and then regretted it, George makes a similar decision.
These two parts of the story are its worst points for me, because they force a moral decision about life and death, the value of life, the influence of others choices on life and death and whether or not those with mental challenges should be accountable for their actions.
Ultimately, I came away simply not caring at all about this story, its attempt to force moral conclusions and outcomes and its sense of empathy.