The Thin Man

A murder comedy. Nick Charles is a former detective. He has retired, married a rich woman and left the profession. His wife Nora is curious about his old life and openly wants something to happen. She gets it. An inventor disappears, a murder follows, and the man's daughter comes to Nick. Nick does not want to be involved. Then he is. The film's real subject is not the investigation but the way two people talk to each other. Nick and Nora needle each other constantly, and their marriage looks nothing like the marriages of the period: equal, mocking and cheerful. Drink is everywhere in it. The characters mix cocktails in the morning, drink during questioning, and nobody treats it as a problem. The narrative ends with a dinner: all the suspects in one room, Nick at the table, laying out the solution. That scene became the mould for the genre. The source is a novel by Dashiell Hammett. William Powell plays Nick and Myrna Loy plays Nora. The pair went on to act together many times and sequels followed. The dog Asta is another fame the series produced. It was shot very quickly on a low budget and became a hit the studio had not expected. W. S. Van Dyke directed; he was known for working fast. Who it is for: anyone who likes classic Hollywood comedy and films built on dialogue. Who it is not for: anyone expecting a realistic detective story; the plot is tangled and the film hardly minds.