After The Thin Man

After the Thin Man (1936)

Runtime: 112 minutes

Directed by: W.S. Van Dyke II

Starring: William Powell, Myrna Loy, James Stewart, Elissa Landi, Joseph Calleia

From: MGM

I have finally watched the second film in this franchise and it will only be a few days until I am done watching all the films. As I am able to I figure it's best if I get them all done with in one shot. The Letterboxd review is below and I'll return Saturday night.

"You see, when it comes to words like that, an illiterate person..."
"What do you mean 'illiterate'? My father and mother were married right here in the city hall!"

To get to the point, my local library has all of The Thin Man films on DVD and as I rate the first one real highly I figured I should watch the five sequels in the next few days, starting with the second film, which begins right after the first one ends.

This time the setting is California as Nick & Nora Charles (also their cute terrier dog Asta) return home from a New York vacation that proved to be a murder investigation. Unfortunately for them they immediately end up in another homicide case; it starts off as Nick looks into the case of the missing husband of Nora's cousin but it turns into much more and has as many twists & turns as the original film.

While this was the longest in the series and at times felt like it, otherwise this is another delightful comedy/mystery with many humorous moments & one-liners to go with the sleuthing. As before, Nick and Nora are equals and both deliver sharp barbs to each other but it is clear they do love each other. The case involves such things as old in-laws that despise Nick, a grumpy police investigator, a Chinese nightclub, and a young James Stewart. There's also the expected alcohol consumption and even Asta as a brief subplot with the love of his life, a “Mrs. Asta”.

Thankfully the movie is more of what I dug about the original, which was great chemistry between the two leads and their charming repartee along with colorful characters and an interesting investigation where you don't know for sure what's going on until it's helpfully explained and you do understand the motive; it's pleasant entertainment.