In this acclaimed adaptation of the novella by John Steinbeck, migrant farmhands George Milton (Burgess Meredith) and Lennie Small (Lon Chaney Jr.) begin working at a ranch near Soledad, California, after the mentally handicapped Lennie got the pair in trouble at their last job. George dreams of settling down on their own farm where Lennie can tend his beloved rabbits, but despite George's best efforts to protect his friend, events accidentally take a tragic turn.