There were a significant number of first and second-generation Irish immigrants labouring in the depression-era United States. That I had to look up that fact, however, doesn’t bode well for actor Chris O’Dowd in the National Theatre production Of Mice and Men, filmed live on Broadway and screening around Australia as part of the National Theatre Live series.

O’Dowd struggles at first to shed the details of his charming Irish brogue to adopt the slanging drawl of 1930s Californian ranch-hands. His co-star, James Franco, is more at home with the dialect, but both take considerable time to really fall into their roles as Lennie Small and George Milton.

The opening scene where the men fight on the night before they begin work at a new ranch is played flat and two-dimensional, which seems odd for two seasoned actors.

Of Mice and Men is adapted for the stage from the John Steinbeck novel of the same name. It follows the friendship of Milton, a sharp and handsome man, and Small, who is simple and possessed of a near-superhuman strength and single-minded work ethic. Despite his value as labour, his diminished mental capacity attracts trouble and his attraction to soft, fragile creatures proves repeatedly tragic as he is unable to control his own strength.

The two men work towards a shared dream – buying a small farm and living a dignified and comfortable life. Their dream attracts other ranchers, who begin to buy in to the pair and their humble ambitions, both emotionally and financially, until tragedy once again strikes at Lennie’s giant, clumsy hands.

Director Anna D Shapiro has mounted a period production that remains faithful to the source text. It’s all denim, timber, dust and tinned beans. Clever and tasteful use of flying sets and small trap doors makes scene changes unobtrusive. The camera work, always tricky when trying to translate theatre into film, is impeccable and does the best possible job of balancing the need for cinematic focus and detail with preserving the feel of the stage and space.

Franco and O’Dowd develop a strong rapport once they shake off the dust in the opening scene, portraying an earnest and co-dependent love in their complementary roles of brain and brawn. The supporting cast members execute their roles well, from boss to slave.

Chris O’Dowd and Leighton Meester in Of Mice and Men. Photo: Richard Phibbs

Leighton Meester (of Gossip Girl fame) pulls a surprisingly nuanced performance out of a minor part as the only girl on the ranch. At the hands of a female director, this production is sophisticated in its consideration of gender and Meester’s character is not allowed to become the floozy caricature the dialogue might suggest.

However, this appreciation for nuance in the text fails to extend to its consideration of class, labour and exploitation. A mini-documentary that rolls during the play’s intermission is telling in the attitudes of the actors and creatives. They extoll the value of authentic human connection as the antidote to destructive capitalism, and hold up George and Lennie’s relationship as a beacon of such love.

To me, this does a disservice to the source text. There is a sinister set of ambiguities floating through Steinbeck’s novel: What has really brought Lennie and George together? What has caused Lennie’s disability? The authenticity of the men’s connection is not clear on paper, but it is played like love. These ambiguities are key to the story’s success as a critique of capitalism and the exploitation of labour. By portraying the pair’s relationship as equal and co-dependant, Shapiro has robbed us of this complexity; George’s temper, control over money and near-jealous hold over his companion should be cause for us to question his motives and try to conceptualise the system and its effects.

There are two distinct readings of this text: one optimistic and utopian, the other cynical and pragmatic. By refusing to acknowledge the cynical, moments like the opening scene are rendered flat and we are left with a story yearning for redemption and catharsis in moments that don’t grant it.

Of Mice and Men will be screening again tomorrow (January 28) at Palace Nova Eastend Cinemas as part of the National Theatre Live series. The next NT Live screening will be Treasure Island, from February 14-18.