After the Thin Man (1936)

Absolutely brilliant

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

This is such a delightful movie. Myrna Loy and William Powell are a perfect couple, each of them so endearing, and their banter is as sharp, witty, and alive today as it was in 1936. I was continually tickled by them throughout the movie, as he contends with her aristocratic and stuffy family, she playfully comments on his saltier acquaintances, and together they find themselves trying to unravel a murder mystery. As an added bonus, we get to see Jimmy Stewart in one of his earlier roles, and cute dog tricks provided by Asta. Oh, and in a brief scene, check out the woman dancing amidst a wild party they come home to – I loved these little touches.The shots of San Francisco and various sets are beautiful, the attire is gorgeous, and the script is strong, which resulted in screenwriters Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett being nominated for an Oscar. Pulling all of the suspects together at the end is a little formulaic and it gets somewhat complicated to understand all of the motives and actions, but it keeps you guessing and the final 'whodunit' is clear. Movies that try to do it all, having elements of comedy, mystery, romance, drama, and song and dance, are often weaker as a result – but here the entire package is quite satisfying. This was the second movie in what would be six total in this series, but it stands on its own and while watching it, you can understand why it was so popular. The murder mystery gets a little glib but still merits eight stars, and Loy and Powell are compelling and warrant nine, so I round up on the overall rating.

Two years later, "After the Thin Man" continues exactly where the immensely successful first "Thin Man" movie had left off: Nick and Nora come home to California after solving the difficult Wynant murder case in New York - and find themselves in their own house right in the middle of a wild New Year's Eve party that their friends are giving to welcome them back; although they'd planned to just take a big rest for about a month...But they can't do that anyway, because they're 'summoned' to dine with Nora's distinguished family by her aunt, whose neurotic daughter Selma once more has got love trouble: her unfaithful husband has been missing for days... So, after a dreadfully boring 'high society' family dinner, they set off in search for the prodigal husband Robert. They find him pretty soon in a shady night club, ready to beat it with the singer after he 'payed off' Selma's former boyfriend David, who's still in love with her, promising to vanish forever and leave them alone. But - soon afterward, Robert is shot dead in the street...Even from this moment on, we all know just as well as Nick and Nora that there were at least half a dozen suspects (each of whom had a pretty good motive to kill Robert) near the scene of the crime - so there are lots of motives and no alibis... And now, the only thing that's left for clever and experienced Nick is to solve the mystery by investigating the psychological side of the crime, grilling everybody until they all reveal their real selves! Again, our nonchalant and cocky detective couple 'party' themselves through a complicated murder case, this time 'torn' between two worlds: Nick's 'natural' night life and ex-con environment, and Nora's haughty rich relatives. Supported by a brilliant cast (especially young James Stewart as Selma's eternal worshiper, Joseph Calleia as the crooked night club owner, and George Zucco as Selma's psychologist, who seems somewhat nutty himself...), Powell and Loy give an equally marvelous performance as in the first 'Nick and Nora' adventure, and director W.S. van Dyke once more grants us a hilarious mixture of crime and comedy - this film certainly established 'Mr. and Mrs. Charles' as the audience's favorite married sleuthing couple, which they remain until today...

AFTER THE THIN MAN (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1936), directed by W.S. Van Dyke, brings together William Powell and Myrna Loy for the sixth time in a sequel from one of their earlier successes, THE THIN MAN (1934). Aside from reprising their roles of Nick and Nora, the story continues where its predecessor left off, on a train bound from New York to San Francisco. Though the script claims to have the couple traveling on board for three days, this continuation took nearly two years for them to arrive at their destination. With Nick's constant boozing, chances are he never noticed it.San Francisco bound on the Sunset Limited, Nick and Nora Charles (Powell and Loy) along with their wire haired terrier, Asta, coming off the train finding themselves surrounded by reporters and assortment of oddball character friends of Nick's congratulating him on solving the "Thin Man" murder case. Driven home by their chauffeur, Harold (John Kelly), a sophisticated couple passing by greet Nora. When Nick asks who they are, she quips, "You wouldn't know them, darling. They're Respectable!" Arriving home for rest and relaxation before setting out to ring in the New Year, Asta, their pooch, heads over to the dog house to greet Mrs. Asta and their puppies. Much to his surprise, he finds his wife might have been cheating on him while away as he notices another dog at close range. Evening plans change as Nora receives a frantic phone call from her cousin, Salma (Elissa Landi) to come see her at her Nob Hill mansion. Placed under psychiatric care of Doctor Adolph Kramer (George Zucco) by her domineering Aunt Katherine Forrest (Jessie Ralph), Salma's troubles are revealed to Nora as being worried over her husband's three day disappearance and asking Nick to find him. Nick and Nora eventually do find her husband, Robert (Alan Marshal) in a Chinatown nightclub managed by Dancer (Joseph Calleia) and partner, Lum Kee (William Law), drunk and flirting with hostess and singer, Polly Byrnes (Dorothy McNulty). Along the way, Nick and Nora discover that David Graham (James Stewart), Salma's former suitor, had given Robert $25,000 to get out of Salma's life. At the stroke of midnight, Robert is walking down the dark streets. A gunshot is fired. Robert is dead. Once again, Nick comes out of retirement to investigate as well as clear Salma, who's suspected of the killing. Along with Lieutenant Abrams (Sam Levene) of the homicide bureau, Nick encounters more baffling mystery and enough surprises to keep anyone guessing. "You bet yah." Coming close to a two hours in length, AFTER THE THIN MAN is seldom dull. Scripted by the same team (Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett) that produced THE THIN MAN, taken from the same characters created by Dashell Hammett, this is one of the rare cases where a sequel surpasses its original. Through its title, this is the film responsible for labeling Nick Charles as "The Thin Man." Separately or individually, Powell and Loy are in top form playing society sleuths with great chemistry and sense of humor. Powell's finest moments are those involving him coping with Nora's relatives and Aunt Julia's constant outbursts addressing him as "Nick-o-las." Scenes involving Nick and the over-aged butler (Tom Ricketts), and Asta's reunion with Mrs. Asta and the pups, were good enough to become inserted comedy highlights in THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT, PART 2 (1976). Myrna Loy's Nora retains her sophisticated manner, even after getting arrested and spending time in jail for interfering in her husband's investigation. James Stewart, early in his career, also gathers enough attention in his atypical role. The dark-haired Dorothy McNulty, later Penny Singleton of the "Blondie" movie series (1938-1950), as the tough talking mistress, takes the spotlight singing songs at the New Year's Eve celebration, "Blow that Horn" (by Walter Donaldson, Bob Wright and Chet Forrest); and "Smoke Dreams" (by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed). Familiar character actors, Paul Fix, Clarence Kolb and Teddy Hart, also participate in smaller roles.As with THE THIN MAN, the gathering of suspects is its climatic highlight, even better this time around. You bet yah. A grand mix of screwball comedy and murder mystery, AFTER THE THIN MAN, distributed to home video in the 1980s and later on DVD. It's shown regularly on Turner Classic Movies, appropriately on or around New Year's Eve where the story is mostly set. What comes AFTER THE THIN MAN? ANOTHER THIN MAN (1939) with Nick and Nora back in New York. Happy New Year. (***1/2)

An exhausting Christmas (from the original The Thin Man), the couple take an exhausting three day train trip and arrive...well...exhausted. Soon, they are sucked into a family matter that involves night club owners, jealous boyfriends, sexy singers and a mysterious Asian. Does it get any better than that?It does, just as soon as Myrna Loy opens her mouth. Her timing is golden and her looks, angelic. Working off of Powell and his shady friends, her one-liners are priceless. The movie is a whirlwind of activity, involving the finding of a murderer. As the murders pile up, the plot muddies and the characters get louder and more frenetic.Nick solves the case as usual: By calling all of the suspects together and waiting for someone to do something dumb. The killer is a surprise without there being a lot of red herrings.Sadly, Asta "phones in" his performance, due to a morphine addiction he picked up while filming a war movie in Laos.