Long before there was talk of Johnny Depp as a possible casting choice for playing Dashiell Hammett’s infamous detective, Nick Charles, there was William Powell. As of this writing, a reboot of this long-running franchise has stalled, and that is generally for the better, as remakes of this kind rarely hit the mark, as evidenced by the recent Liam Neeson-headed Marlow. These kinds of mystery/dramas seem best when they are left in the 1930s or 40s, and attempts to modernize them generally meet with failure. In my humble opinion, the only good thing that comes out of remaking/reimagining these old properties is that it reintroduces the originals to a new generation, not all of whom are adverse to watching black-and-white films.
Dashiell’s novel, originally released in a condensed version in a late 1933 issue of Redbook, saw a proper book release the following month. Almost immediately, the author was commissioned to provide the plotting for a film adaptation, though the final script would end up being penned by married couple Albert Hackett and Frances Goodrich. Ultimately, Dashiell would write the stories for the first three films in what would end up being a six-film series as well as a television show that ran for two years in the 50s. The characters of Nick and his wife, Nora, proved to be fertile fodder for the mystery genre, and, as big as William Powell and Myrna Loy, playing Nora Charles, would become in Hollywood, they would be forever recognized as these two iconic characters.
Both actors had careers prior to this series. William Powell was primarily known for villainous characters but was already rising out of that stereotype and into leading man territory. Myrna Loy, on the other hand, had been stuck being cast as exotic beauties and was a gamble for director W.S. Van Dyke to cast in such an important and pivotal role. The story goes that he didn’t want to cast her initially but saw her at a party. He decided spontaneously to push her into a swimming pool to see how she would react. When she took this all in good fun, he knew then and there that she was the one for this film.
There is no doubt that this movie, and the sequels that came out of it, would not have worked without the chemistry between Nick and Nora. The two leads bounce off each other with jibes and barbs that could be seen as waspish but don’t because Powell and Loy sell the love their characters have for each other. We see all that we need to about their relationship early on when a young woman falls into his arms just as Nora comes in. There is no sense of jealousy when Nora sees them because she trusts her husband. Had this been Penny Singleton in one of those Blondie movies, this would have resulted in an hour of jealous rage and the wife packing her things to go live with her mother. Instead, Nora knows there is nothing going on between her husband and this girl, and the two give each other a comedic expression before he steps back from this distraught young woman.
Another thing that separated this couple from other on-screen couples of the time is that Nick is not threatened in the slightest by his wife’s success. Nora is wealthy, and Nick has no issues with retiring and doing nothing, living off her wealth. And Nora has no interest in pushing him to get off his butt and contribute financially to the family, either. She does, however, want to see him in action when a murder occurs, but he doesn’t want to come out of retirement. It seems inevitable that he will have to eventually take up the case, but he does so reluctantly.
The mystery, itself, almost comes second to Nick and Nora’s relationship. It’s definitely less interesting than watching the two banter and play off each other. What the plot boils down to is Clyde Wynant, the titular Thin Man (Edward Ellis), fails to show up for his daughter’s wedding and is presumed missing. Prior to his disappearance, he had discovered that $50,000 that he had set aside for her for when she married was missing. The money was taken by his secretary, Julia Wolf (Natalie Moorhead), and when he confronted her about it, she admitted that she had taken it and spent half. He insisted she repay it in full, or he would report her to the police. Three months later, with the wedding on the horizon, his daughter, Dorothy (Maureen O’Sullivan), reports him missing.
Nick Charles (William Powell) and his wife are visiting the city, enjoying his retirement as well as the upcoming Christmas holiday. With the announcement of Clyde’s disappearance, Nick is being pressured to take on the case by Dorothy, the police, and even his wife, who has always wanted to see her husband in action. But Nick doesn’t want to take the case. He prefers his current lifestyle of going out drinking to excess and enjoying not having to worry about anything. But after a body is found and a hoodlum shows up at their hotel, holding them at gunpoint and insisting he is innocent, it becomes obvious that Nick will have to take the case, if for no other reason than to get a little peace, again.
Most people assume “The Thin Man” refers to Nick Charles. That is along the same lines as assuming the creature is named Frankenstein and not the doctor that created him. This is because the follow-up movies all use the moniker of The Thin Man even though that name referred to the murder victim in this first film. It was the right choice from a marketing view but makes no sense from a continuity standpoint. The rebranding of Nick Charles would help promote this franchise into six films, each of varying quality, and a television series. I have not found an episode of the show to compare this to, but I can say that after Dashiell Hammett stepped away from the franchise, it took a major drop in quality. However, though the films themselves weren’t as good, Nick and Nora remained a highlight always worth checking out.
The mystery plot is not the easiest to follow, especially on first viewing, but it’s nowhere near as obtuse as Raymond Chandler’s The Big Sleep with Humphrey Bogart. The screenwriting duo of Hackett and Goodrich are largely to blame for that. So much of what makes Nick and Nora so fun to watch was not in that original novel. Where it can falter, though, is when scenes directly from the book feel out of place when matched to the stuff from Hackett and Goodrich. There is a scene where Nick punches Nora in the face to knock her out and save her from a bullet. This moment is straight from the book and comes so abruptly and is shocking in its brutality. That, in turn, is juxtaposed with humor in an attempt to soften the blow. When Nora is revived, she isn’t mad at him for hitting her; she’s mad that she missed all the action. On top of that, Astra, their dog, is always cuteing it up in an attempt to lighten things. When Nick knocks Nora out, Astra runs and hides under the bed. Astra was played by veteran dog actor Skippy, who was the highest-paid animal actor at the time. He was previously seen in a film I reviewed not that long ago, The Awful Truth, among many other films.
Nick and Nora are such wonderful characters, and their legacy has endured long after their series of films came to a close. That is why attempts have been made to bring them back in newer films. That is also why that should never happen, too. Some things are best left in the past, where people can discover them as they were rather than what some modern screenwriter wants them to become. I would still go see a new version of The Thin Man, like when I went to see Marlow in theaters back in 2022. But, just like with Marlow, I would expect to be disenchanted with the results and desire to rewatch the original to wash that taste out of my mouth.
Academy Award Nominations:
Best Picture: Hunt Stromberg
Best Director: W.S. Van Dyke
Best Actor: William Powell
Best Adaptation: Albert Hackett and Francis Goodrich
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Release Date: May 25, 1934
Running Time: 91 Minutes
Not Rated
Starring: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Maureen O’Sullivan, Nat Pendleton, and Minna Gombell
Directed By: W.S. Van Dyke
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