The Thin Man 1934
I had heard about this movie when I saw it in some people's collections from whom I was borrowing a movie via the now defunct Screen Pass system. I had an Amazon digital credit and this movie, with a 98% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, seemed like a good choice. Made in 1934, the film is in terrible shape, but it still feels reasonably fresh as a movie, a murder mystery solved by a reluctant retired private detective. It moves at a very fast pace, with more murders happening as the film unfolds and builds up to a big dinner party scene at the end where the detective explains who did it. There is a big cast of characters, kind of hard to keep up with, I think because it stayed true to Dashiell Hammett's book. There is some stuff thrown in that doesn't work that well, including Nick Charles and his wife Nora always drinking and being drunk or hung over. They have a lot of lively banter between them, which resulted in the movie becoming a franchise of six movies. Nick is a great character, known and respected by the police as well as underworld members. There are some action scenes that seems a little clumsy, including one where he punches his wife to get her out of the line of fire (?). The movie has a lot of scheming bad guys, wisecracks, and a mystery that will keep you guessing. I am probably giving it a little extra credit for its age, but this was a surprisingly good movie.
Written: 05 May 2024
Owned on: Digital