History YMMV / OfMiceAndMen

* CrossesTheLineTwice: For many, Lennie's more quicker death in movie can cause some unintentional laughs.

* JerkassWoobie: Curley's wife. Loses most of the Jerk part in the movie.

* ValuesDissonance: The extremely sympathetic character Candy freely using the N word is pretty jarring now.

** Curley's wife, to an extent. She's married to a badly-tempered man who is extremely possessive of her, and keeps her as a trophy wife. She's obviously lonely, but all the workers are too scared of her husband to speak with her. She later tries to chat up Lennie, which ends with her panicking when he won't stop stroking her hair and, when she starts to scream, him killing her by accident.
** Crooks. He's a lonely black man that isn't allowed to befriend the other workers because of his race. He receives no respect despite being one of the few, at least we know of, who once lived on his "own" land. He's now jaded due to racism and loneliness, explaining his attitude toward Lennie initially.

* TheScrappy: Nobody both in and out-of-universe likes Curley for a [[TheNapoleon good]] [[{{Jerkass}} reason]].

* JerkassWoobie: Curley's wife. Looses most of the Jerk part in the movie.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: In the 1992 movie, Curley's wife is [[AdaptationalHeroism far more sympathetic than in the book]] - specifically, the scene in which she crosses the MoralEventHorizon by threatening to have Crooks lynched is omitted. The director wanted her depicted more as a "sad angel" rather than the vampish character she appeared to be in the novel.

** Subverted with Aaron's StepUpToTheMicrphone. The fans were very supportive of him and even highly praised his vocal ability.

* FaceOfTheBand: Austin and Aaron.

--> [[MadonnaWhoreComplex She was told over and over that she must remain a virgin because that was the only way she could get a husband]] ... She only had that one thing to sell and she knew it. [[HiddenDepths She is a nice, kind girl and not a floozy]]. No man has ever considered her as anything except a girl to try to make ... As to her actual sex life -- she has had none except with Curley and there [[SexlessMarriage has probably been no consummation]] there since [[ItsAllAboutMe Curley would not consider her gratification]] and would probably be suspicious if she had any.

* HolyShitQuotient: Goes up ''exponentially'' in the final two chapters with [[spoiler:Lennie accidentally killing Curley's wife]] and George killing Lennie.
* ItWasHisSled: [[spoiler: Lennie dies.]]

** Curley's wife, to an extent. She's married to a badly-tempered man who is extremely possessive of her, and keeps her as a trophy wife. She's obviously lonely, but all the workers are too scared of her husband to speak with her. She later tries to chat up Lennie, [[spoiler:which ends with her panicking when he won't stop stroking her hair and, when she starts to scream, him killing her by accident.]]

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: In the 1992 movie, Curley's wife is far more sympathetic than in the book - specifically, the scene in which she crosses the MoralEventHorizon by threatening to have Crooks lynched is omitted. The director wanted her depicted more as a "sad angel" rather than the vampish character she appeared to be in the novel.

* UnfortunateImplications: The ending seems to suggest that mentally ill people need to be put down, not just for their own safety, but for society's benefit as well. Becomes HarsherInHindsight considering the ''extremely'' disrespectful and insensitive way society treats the mentally ill to this day (i.e.: the "Triggered" joke).

* UnfortunateImplications: The ending seems to suggest that mentally ill people need to be put down not just for their own safety, but for society's benefit as well. Becomes HarsherInHindsight considering the ''extremely'' disrespectful way society treats the mentally ill to this day (i.e.: the "Triggered" joke).

** Crooks. He's a lonely black man that isn't allowed to befriend the other workers because of his race. He receives no respect despite being one of the few, at least we know of, who one lived on his "own" land. He's now jaded due to racism and loneliness, explaining his attitude toward Lennie initially.

* ItWasHisSled: Lennie dies.
* JerkassWoobie: Curley's wife.

* HeyItsThatGuy: [[ForrestGump Lt.Dan]] or [[{{CSINY}} Mac Taylor]] is George in the 1992 movie. Lennie is John Malkovich [[Film/BeingJohnMalkovich Malkovich Malkovich]].
** Burgess Meredith (better known as Mickey in the ''Rocky'' film series) was George in the original film.

* HolyShitQuotient: Goes up ''exponentially'' in the final two chapters with [[spoiler:Lennie accidentally killing Curley's wife and George killing Lennie.]]
* ItWasHisSled: [[spoiler:Lennie dies.]]

* TheWoobie: George. The man constantly loses his job and seems like he actually is a pretty nice guy, but he has to endure a lot of pain since he travels with Lennie. He causes George to frequently lose his job and be on the run and George can't have a social life because he always has to take care of Lennie [[spoiler:AND [[TearJerker he forced]] [[MercyKill himself to]] [[ShootTheDog shoot Lennie]]]]. You gotta feel a LITTLE sorry for him because of that.

** Lennie, too. However goofy it may be, the scene in which he gets internal dialogue (with the aunt who raised him and with a [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment rabbit]]) is utterly heartbreaking; he blames himself for everything that goes wrong in George's life, and his biggest fear is being abandoned. And all he really wants to do is [[ChronicPetKiller hold little animals]].

* MemeticMutation: George's love of rabbits sprung from this novel, with PopCulturalOsmosis thanks to WesternAnimation/BugsBunny.

* MemeticMutation: George's love of rabbits sprung from this novel, with PopCultureOsmosis thanks to WesternAnimation/BugsBunny.

** [[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leighton-meester/im-not-a-tart-the-feminis_b_5587422.html Steinbeck]] once wrote to the original actress portraying Curley's wife in theater that she was sympathetic

* HeyItsThatGuy: [[ForrestGump Lt.Dan]] or [[{{CSINY}} Mac Taylor]] is George in the 1992 movie.

** Quite surprised that he isn't on here but most definitely, Crooks. He's a lonely black man that isn't allowed to befriend the other workers because of his race. He receives no respect despite being one of the few, at least we know of, who one lived on his "own" land. He's now jaded due to racism and loneliness, explaining his attitude toward Lennie initially.