bigverybadtom The original "The Thin Man" movie was based on the title Dashiell Hammett detective novel, and it played itself more for its humorous aspects than as a serious mystery. The idea evidently worked, for this started a series of "Thin Man" movies which were not based on any Hammett stories, with the comic adventures of Nick and Nora doing detective work.In this run, Nick and Nora have come back from New York to California on New Year's, hoping to relax but instead being treated to a surprise party, and then having to meet Nora's aristocratic and snooty relatives. Unfortunately Nora's cousin Selma's husband has disappeared (as he had done before), and begs Nick and Nora to find him. Reluctantly, they do so. They find him quickly, alive and well, at a local club, but the problems, and the story, are only beginning as the husband is murdered, and Nick and Nora unearth some criminal intrigues...The story is played basically for laughs, though there is violence, danger, and tension. There are jokes about 3 am breakfasts and drinking lots of alcohol and smoking, and the dog Asta gives Nick and Nora trouble rather than provides help...and the very end of the story has a cute twist to it. It's entertaining more than anything else, but enjoyable if you like it.

classicsoncall After the success of the original Thin Man film, fan letters poured in to MGM for a sequel to reunite the principal characters portrayed by William Powell and Myrna Loy. They finally got around to it, but what amazes me is that Powell and Loy appeared in three unrelated films together in between, and they also made seven additional movies EACH before "After the Thin Man", a span of only two years! Talk about a hectic schedule.They call this the best of the series but I'm somewhat at a disadvantage since I've only seen this one along with 1934's "The Thin Man". That will be remedied shortly, as all the films were screened this New Year's Eve/New Year's Day on Turner Classics, a cool way to ring in 2016. The fact that this picture opens with the same celebration was a neat coincidence, but I couldn't help wondering why Nick (Powell) and Nora (Loy) Charles remained so detached about their home being used for a surprise party, especially when it looked like not a single person there knew them.If you like snappy dialog to go along with a dash of murder mystery, this one will be right up your alley. The picture is loaded with murder victims and likely suspects, and more than a helping of your traditional red herrings. Nick Charles takes the Charlie Chan route to revealing the killer in an ending that seems to come out of left field, making sense only when he goes into a detailed explanation. In that regard I was reminded of the 1945 Humphrey Bogart film "Conflict", in which Sydney Greenstreet picks up on an early clue to determine that Bogey's character murdered his wife.In this picture, an innocent slip of the tongue by David Graham (Jimmy Stewart) convinces Nick that Graham's motive for murdering Robert Landis (Alan Marshal) was revenge for stealing his fiancée out from under him. Actually, Stewart's character here was an all purpose killer, taking out two additional victims, and it would have been three if he could have knocked off his one time girlfriend Selma (Elissa Landi). This was not the Jimmy Stewart from "It's a Wonderful Life".With all the murder and mayhem going on, it didn't seem like Mrs. Charles had much to do in the picture, but her repartee with Mr. Charles was lively and entertaining whenever it did occur. Additional comic relief was provided this time around by the Charles' pet terrier Asta, woefully bemoaning the fact that Mrs. Asta might have played around during his absence in New York. A brood of pups included a single black puppy, a clue that maybe the terrier next door might have taken advantage of the situation.

Robert J. Maxwell Directed by W. S. ("One Take Woody") Van Dyke, this is by consensus the most appealing of the Thin Man series. Not a masterpiece, it's a delightful divertimento.They may never have been a more enjoyable married couple in such a series. Not only does William Powell (Nick Charles) love Myrna Loy (Nora) but they serve as a good illustration of the complementary theory of marriage. Powell is sharp as a tack but often half gassed. ("Let's get something to eat. I'm thirsty.") Loy is the sensible wife with a mind of her own and an appreciation of irony. He represents adventure; she provides the class.This case is a lot of complicated nonsense and it's most interesting element is that Jimmy Stewart is revealed as a homicidal maniac. Other than that, there are multiple suspects and red herrings and George Zucco wearing a pair of glasses that look like Coke bottle bottoms. Sam Levene is the frustrated San Francisco police lieutenant who barks out orders that nobody follows and questions that nobody answers. ("Just what was the poi-puss of your visit?") And Asta the dog is cute -- too cute.But the plot doesn't matter. It's the repartee between the characters that counts and the dialog here is very keenly written and nicely supplemented by the physical comedy and by glances and sneers. Powell finds himself seated after dinner with five old men who are asleep and snoring loudly. He carries on a mock conversation with them. "Why, NO!" "You AMAZE me." "Well, surely you have an opinion on that." He turns from one immobile sleeper to another and waits for the answers that come apace as loud snores.The series had a cult following and it's easy to see why.

steve-2246 After The Thin Man Second in a series of Comedy/Film Noir. Due to the success of the first the writers/producer decided that we needed to see Nick and Nora in their natural habitat. This adds at least 45 minutes of completely unnecessary and very irritating footage.Apparently everyone also loved the dog, Asta, so he has to have his own part. Very enjoyable, adds nothing to the story.There is a murder mystery contained in here, but the real story is Nick and Nora solve the mystery, so there's quite a bit of drinking, witty repartee and dopey friends to play off of.This film cries out for an editor to tighten it up by about 45 minutes.If you are looking for a tight, suspenseful, murder mystery, watch The Maltese Falcon. If you want a slow comedy mystery with witty repartee, get this one, you'll like it.