Of Mice And Men Blu Ray Review (MGM)

Of Mice and Men is a 1992 drama produced and directed by lead actor Gary Sinise (Crime Story, Thirtysomething, China Beach, and Miles from Home). It was written by Horton Foote (Main Street, Convicts, 1918, Alone, Old Man, and Lily Dale). It’s based on the novel by author John Steinbeck (The Grapes of Wrath, The Moon Is Down, Viva Zapata!, Lifeboat, and Tortilla Flat). It’s been adapted 8 other times so far. It grossed $5,471,088 at the box office. During the Great Depression, the smart George Milton (played by: Gary Sinise from Forrest Gump, Apollo 13, Ransom, Criminal Minds, Reindeer Games, Snake Eyes, The Green Mile, The Stand, and Truman) and the physically strong but mentally disabled Lennie Small (played by: John Malkovich from Con Air, In the Line of Fire, Burn After Reading, Being John Malkovich, Dangerous Liaisons, Jonah Hex, Art School Confidential, Knockaround Guys, Empire of the Sun, Rounders, and Red 1/2) are running away from their previous job. They travel to work on Tyler’s ranch for a fresh start. The Boss (played by: Noble Willingham from Walker Texas Ranger, City Slickers franchise, The Howling, and Ace Ventura) is suspicious of Lennie’s mental condition but George lies to him so it won’t be a problem anymore.They befriend ranch-hand Candy (played by: Ray Walston from My Favorite Martian, Popeye, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, The Sting, The Stand, and Popcorn) but they don’t get along with the Boss’s son Curley (played by: Casey Siemaszko from Young Guns, Back to the Future, Stand by Me, Three O’Clock High, Class, and NYPD Blue). Curley’s beautiful lonely wife (played by: Sherilyn Fenn from Twin Peaks, Boxing Helena, Meridian, Just One of the Guys, The Wild Life, The Wraith, and Rude Awakening) flirts with Lennie and George. George meets their work team which includes Slim (played by: John Terry from E.R., Full Metal Jacket, The Living Daylights, Zodiac, and Lost), Crooks (played by: Joe Morton from Terminator 2, Speed, City of Hope, Justice League, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, and American Gangster), and Carlson (played by: Richard Riehle from Hatchet, Casino, Office Space, Duece Bigalow, Halloween II, and Grounded for Life). Curley continues to bully the help and tension starts to build up. George and Lennie try to stay to themselves but they become friends with her crew plus Curley’s wife after spending some time on the ranch. Lennie can’t help it but he gets himself into serious trouble again, can George save him again???? Of Mice and Men is a classic book and I remember reading it in school back in the day. It’s been adapted so many times over the years but this is still the best version of it so far. Lead actor Gary Sinise gets behind the camera for this full length feature version of the iconic story. He mainly directed television besides one other film but he proved here that he could have done more if he wanted to when it comes to film making. Gary Sinise is great as George Milton, he’s a hard worker that can’t catch a break because of his loyalty to his friend. He’s forced moving around so much because of it. He tries his best to keep everything alright but it’s just too much for him at times. John Malkovich gives one of his best performances as Lennie Small. He’s fantastic as the slow but tough man. He doesn’t really know he’s own strength and it keeps getting him into bad situations. These two have amazing chemistry and their relationship here is very interesting. Casey Siemaszko plays Curley, he’s a piece of shit. Casey Siemaszko flexes his acting talents as the mean spirited bully that doesn’t know when to stop pushing people’s buttons. Sherilyn Fenn looks amazing in Of Mice and Men. She’s the eye candy to the ranch and her loneliness continues to tempt the other men. Fenn is impressive as the lost woman that just wants some attention. It has a great supporting cast that includes Richard Riehle, Noble Willingham, Joe Morton, John Terry, Alexis Arquette, and especially Ray Walston who steals the show as the old man trying to have a better life than this. The script captures the famous story perfect for film. It doesn’t feel forced or rushed like some other adaptations. The character development makes you care about them as time goes on. It has a really sad ending but you understand why it happens. This is one of better period pieces and dramas made in the 90’s. It has strong replay value, I enjoy Of Mice and Men every time it’s on. RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation from MGM! This 1080p (1.85:1) transfer is the same older HD restoration as the one that was used from the MGM archives on the Olive Films home video release years ago. It’s still much better than the previous DVD release and it’s currently the best version of the movie out there. It has an English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. The audio here is definitely better than expected. All of the dialogue is crystal clear, the drama is elevated, and the music has a killer boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. Unfortunately, there’s no extras on this disc. Despite it’s artwork that’s listed almost everywhere for this blu ray, it’s actually not a BD-R, it might still be considered M.O.D. because it’s limited amount produced but it’s actually pro pressed just like most of MGM’s current recent catalog title releases. It’s available everywhere right now including MovieZyng.com, CHECK IT OUT!!!!