Like Tarzan, another popular 1930s MGM film series, The Thin Man attempted to adapt to the increasingly conservative mindset of the Hays Office censors by giving its protagonists an adorable child, thus making the franchise sweeter and what we would call “family-friendly” today. The result of such efforts was Another Thin Man, a 1939 crime comedy directed by W. S. Van Dyke, the third instalment of the series.
The film is very loosely based on “Farewell Murder”, a hard‑boiled detective story by the characters’ creator Dashiell Hammett, which originally featured the Continental Op as the protagonist. The plot, however, begins with former private detective Nick Charles (played by William Powell), his rich socialite wife Nora (played by Myrna Loy), and their terrier Asta (played by Skippy) returning to New York City, this time joined by the couple’s eight‑month‑old son Nicky Jr. (played by William A. Paulsen). Soon afterwards, Colonel McFay (played by C. Aubrey Smith), a rich industrialist and business associate of Nora’s father, asks Nick to come to his Long Island estate to help him deal with a campaign of threats and intimidation. The most likely culprit is Phil Church (played by Sheldon Leonard), an engineer and McFay’s former employee who considers his boss responsible for his ten‑year prison sentence. When McFay is killed, Church, who became acquainted with various underworld characters during his incarceration, apparently tries to flee the country, but Nick suspects that the murderer might be someone with a different agenda. His investigation is, however, hampered by the time‑consuming demands of parenthood.
Another Thin Man is the last film in the series written by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, spouses who drew inspiration from their own lives for the characters of Nick and Nora Charles and their banter. It was also the last directly based on Hammett’s work. William Powell and Myrna Loy, one of the most popular screen couples in Hollywood, returned to the screen, together with director W. S. Van Dyke. The formula, established in the previous two films, generally works, although the murder mystery, which also involves the killing of someone’s dogs, seems more sinister. Such darker tones are, however, confined to the first segment of the film that takes place on McFay’s estate, and the film becomes much lighter when the plot returns to New York City, even with the introduction of underworld characters who are presented mostly as comical and, at times, friendly to Nick. This is exemplified by a hilarious scene in which they stage an impromptu party for Nicky Jr., bringing their own infant sons along.
However, the main problem with Another Thin Man is an overcomplicated plot, with many characters introduced solely to serve as red herrings and make solving the mystery as difficult for the audience as possible; once the actual killer is revealed, it is, predictably but not too convincingly, the least likely suspect, and the whole affair feels non‑cathartic. The mystery takes up too much time and leaves little opportunity for Nick and Nora to engage in their comical banter, which was the main attraction of the series. This is, to a degree, compensated by the murder suspects and people associated with them being played by a very enthusiastic cast of character actors, which includes Sheldon Leonard as the sinister Church, Abner Biberman as Church’s ridiculously loyal underling Dum Dum, and Nat Pendleton, who reprises his role as police detective Guild from the first film in the series. Although oriented more towards mystery than comedy, and overlong despite Van Dyke’s no‑nonsense, economical style of direction, Another Thin Man delivered enough entertainment to become a major box‑office hit and secure three more sequels over the next decade. RATING: 6/10 (++)
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