The most sad part is how excited lennie was.

God, the way Lon Chaney builds up at the end. "Yeah..I can see it! GEORGE! RIGHT OVER THERE! I CAN SEE IT..."bang. Gets me every time. At least he died happy.

I've seen complaints about the lack of emotion displayed by some of the actors, particularly in the end sequence. Remember when this film was made and you will find your answer there. This controlled, muted, display of emotion was what was expected of men then (my own father was in his mid-twenties) and any histrionics would have been considered wildly inappropriate; men didn't feel less, but they shared a lot less. Movies and books must be judged with an eye to when they were produced, like the people that produced them, they are also the products of their time.

Lon Chaney, Jr. should've gotten an Oscar for this. He was amazing in this film.

9:00 - 9:22: The real star of the movie makes its cameo. That squirrel stole that ending.

No matter which version you watch the ending is always sad.

what the fuck am I the only one who actually loved the way they acted in this movie?

I rarely cry at movies, but this is one of the few times I did. That music building up and Lennie's excitement..... 😭

Steinbeck brilliant understanding of compassion as a mode of Love.

Lon Chaney, Jr. should have won an Oscar for his performance in this film. He did a great job, it's really sad he didn't even get nominated for this film.

Curleys wife was killed and hes mad about his hand?

I think Burgess Meredith's portrayal of George was outstanding. The character's grief is there..if you look. The body language, his voice as he gently tells Lenny "how its gonna be" and his face..Do watch again..A great adaption of a great book...Not to mention the late great Lon Chaney. His Lenny will always be the one you remember.

Can’t deny, the cinematography in this movie is amazing.

The way he kills Lennie looks more like the way a mob boss would kill than a best friend.

The Scene represents how Lennie is so excited for a dream that cant happen. George being the friend he is knows that telling lennie this would kill him on the inside and does what has to be done.

I remember watching this when I was around 8. I was talking about this recently so looked it up . It was the first film that made me cry.

This scene breaks my heart..Lon Chaney jr really really shined in this film..He was probably the most underrated actor of his time...Aaron Copland's music so rich and perfect...I weep everytime I watch this film.

Truly classic! One of the few movies that followed the book almost exactly. There was a movie made shortly after this when Bob Hope tells Lon Chaney's character "Why don't you go play with your rabbits!" . An onscreen nod to the brilliance of this story.

"Look at the flowers Lenny".. :)

Just look at the flowers, George. Just look at the flowers.

This is so much more emotional and tragic than the later remake everyone here seems to think is so superior. The music along with Chaney's performance as he truly believes he sees his new home is heart breaking. Beautiful. Huh, most people here wouldn't know good acting if it shot them in the head from behind.

Afterwards, George was overwhelmed with guilt, lost his mind, and became the Penguin.

I read the book and I cried and Now I SEE THISS😢 I'm bawling my eyes NOW!!!!

The build up leading to Lennie's death is more powerful in this version. The remake years later rushed it a bit too much so that it wasn't really sad but in this version you really feel for Lennie as he is excited about the future of his life which is about to be cut short. I'm a bit bugged that they played music after he shot Lennie in this version though, the music leading upto it was great but I feel as though the silence afterwards would have let it sink in a lot more.

"Get up you son of a bitch, cos mickey loves ya"

Lonnie Jr should have gotten an oscar for this performance!

Such a sad movie. George had to do it because he loved him so.

I like both versions. This and the remake, I think they both did things better. This did the ending and in my view, Lenny's charterer better while I found the remake did Curly's wife and Crooks better. I love the book and I feel both did different things good.

Lon Cheney Jr could have been an Oscar nominee in any other year.

So much poetry in this beautiful film,still as great !!!

I read this book in middle school. I've always loved the classics. This book makes me cry every time. It's so sad, but it was a different time.

Yes. I'm glad they used an actual Luger instead of the 1992 version using a revolver.

A Masterpiece of raw emotions..one of the saddest endings in movie history,,

Still brings tears to my eyes

I cried when he shot Lenny; guess I am a big baby ! The injustice and the horror of what George had to do was tragic.

i like the 1992 one better. wait, scratch that... i like the book the best...

I have cried every time I watched this movie and I've seen it a lot poor leni Best movie ever

No I disagree..the Music was EVERYTHING.. Copland was a genius..the music made me cry with the scene..

the music is actually used wonderfully in this. lennie can finally see this piece of land they've been talking about forever and the upbeat music sort of implies a happy ending, but of course we all know that it won't end that way. lennie is happy in the final moments of his life.

Notice there is no dialogue needed Charles Bickford pulls at the marshalls arm Burgess Meredith Looks at Bickford, then the marshall looks at Bickford and he nods while collecting the gun..Thats Cinema

I watched this one on TVO years ago and felt transfixed by it. Next day I went to school and asked if we'd be studying it. I don't care how much has changed in films over the years. I am grateful I can appreciate films from an earlier era. I'd like to show this one to my students in grade 9 now, but b&w films are too hard for them to deal with!

that dolly move after the push at 2:08- one of the highest moments in cinema

Reading the book for class... didn't know it was going to end this way!!! :( Lenny was my favourite character!!! ; - ;

Thank you soooooooooooooooooooooo much for uploading this movie! Finally!

They made it way too obvious what was going to end up happening... made it much less tragic.

It's not often that film makes me shed a tear at the end. Bravo!

Thank you for posting this! This is a really great scene!

I love old movies. I have to say those that a lot of the movies from this era had so much inexplicable and overly obnoxious music. It really distracts you from what’s going on. Sometimes less really is more.

It is absolutely fucking criminal that Chaney didn't get a supporting actor nomination from the Academy for this film. I absolutely love him as the Wolf Man, but I think this movie, as well as his turns in High Noon, The Defiant Ones and Not as a Stranger are more than enough proof that he could have been one of the best character actors of his era if not for bullshit typecasting.

Lennie’s in Heaven! He’s on his farm playing with his rabbits.

Burgess Meredith was a colossally good actor - absolutely superb in everything he ever did.

@freddy3911 Oh yes,Burgess Meredith was such a great one.Younger people only know him in "Rocky", but he was also known for "Twilight Zone" series",Magic"(Anthony Hopkins), and in many character actor roles earlier in his life. Oh yes,and playing the Penquin in Batman.(TV) This version of Mice and Men certainly the best.

I recently watched the remake of this film and utterly despised it. I found the ending to be brief, cruel, and made George look as if he wanted to kill Lennie and it was an easy task. In this the ending was so much more passionate and heart touching. When I watched the remake's ending it scared and angered me but this made me cry. The originals will always be better than remakes

This 1930's version of Inside Out is powerful

Was an oky version, but never in years of my life did I ever think of saying that the 'new version' was better, because in all honesty it was. It was amazingly emotive in ways that words cannot describe, while this one...it didn't get my heart racing like the newer one did. Don't have a proper clue why but I still love it! x

I'm 19 and found this more enjoyable and better made than the more recent movie. This is how i imagined the book to be like :)

Amazing score by Aaron Copland.

no matter what version of the movie you watch, it's still a awesome story

George had nothing. It was just Lennie and George. They had each other, but that was it. Nothing to really give each other, yet at the end, George was able to give Lennie the world, and in the end he had to take away his own.

"george i can see it!!!!" "u cant now"

most heart wrenching scene

It doesn't matter which version you look at, the truth remains the same: I realize they are just fictional characters, but George and Lennie, I am so, so sorry.

just finished this book today in english class...instant favorite

I think I like this version better, the ending in the more recent one just seems to have been cut off too soon and just doesn't give me the same feel as the book. Also the Lennie in this one is much better, I also agree. This version gave me much more of a feel to the story itself.

Wow, they actually got a luger for this version, in the remake it was just some revolver

always the saddest part in the movie when George had to kill Lennie to protect him

My friend's big brother cried when he read the book.

The grief on George's face is palpable. We have to keep in mind that in 1939, men werent exactly allowed to show a lot of emotion. But this actor made his grief on his face and his body language said it all. ....ending the life of your friend because back then that was justice.....killing him to give him a mercy and to make him happy in the end. 😢

Steinbeck liked this better than his own book, or the stage play. As a screenwriter himself, he understood.

The shooting scene is so much better in this than in the newer one

I actually think this is more emotional than the license in the other film

I love their acting 😂 *George already knows about curly’s wife* “curly’s wife has been murdered!” “NANI?!?!?!”

More feeling in this version, Burgess and Chaney were perfect!!!!! 1939 was a banner year for films and film scores!

Good lord method acting has improved since this era.... Lennie is basically just reading lines as if he were a charicature of a dope. I like the new movie alot better.

We read this book in GCSE English in 2006, I wish I had paid more attention then, this is one of the best stories I have read, ever!

I had to read this book forms AP Lit class.....I cried... a lot. This movie was fantastic!

Aaron Copeland's music adds a dimension to this already powerful scene that makes this an unforgettable classic.

Huh...... here i am at 40 years old, read the book and saw the gary sinese movie in school and today, february 23rd 2024, i learned there is an old black and white movie based on the book. How the hell did i miss this?

I feel like the only one who thought the acting was good?

Gotta love Lon Chaney Jr.!

There's plenty of rabbits where he's going...

I still need to see that one. It's considered one of his best.

one thing i like about this one, is unlike the other 2 ones, george doesn't leave the ranch. it ruin one of the most important lines "now what do u supposed is eating them 2?"

Am I the only one who preferred the remake ending? It felt more of a shock when George shot him, because he stands and shoots him in a second. In this one you just wait for it to happen, he spends time readying the weapon. Plus this one gives you time to reel from the shock, the remake just leaves you hanging

wow, that push, amazing. as though he was telling him hes not alone in what has to be done

This always makes me cry so much after seeing it. So sad...-_-

Still a classic. Bob Steele was good in everything he did. Lon Chaney Jr. and Burgess Meredith were professionals to the core and it is an ending that sticks with you. The mark of a good book is how after you close it up you still have an after taste in your heart of the author's soul.

Incredible and powerful music score by Aaron Copland..

The book > This. This > The '92 remake

Boy, comments sections can be something. It amazes me how easily some people can shit on gold.

the penguin n the wolf man.

i waited for ages thinking this was a music video from the band.i cant even.

Burgess Meredith played many great roles. Four episodes of The Twilight Zone, Grumpy and Grumpier Old Men, Mickey in the Rocky movies, and this one too.

He was also great as the penguin in the old batman series and of course that twilight zone episode about him breaking his glasses, "Enough time in the world" or something like that.

Honestly if they cut the music out and let the silence build up the emotion. It would've been more🤌

The saddest part about this is how Lennie gets so excited when George laments how he'd be better off without him

Curley is played by Bob Steele, the old-timey cowboy actor who was later "Trooper Duffy" in TV's "F Troop".

We read the book , and watched the movie .... Both were fantastic..... I hate reading but this is one of the books I loved.......

Burgess Meredith was nominated for a best supporting acting Oscar two years in a row (1974-1975). Lost to George Burns and Jason Robards, Jr.

AND Burgess Meredith as George. can't believe i've never heard of this version before.