Shadow of the Thin Man (1941)
At the start, we get a flavor of the good ol’ tongue-in-cheek humor of the Thin Man series. Myrna Loy wants her husband William Powell to return home, so she starts mixing a martini. From across the street on a park bench, Bill senses her activity and he returns home in a jiffy. There’s a definite humor to the Thin Man movies, and if you don’t like it, you probably won’t want to watch the entire series.
In this one, Bill’s interest in horseracing catches up with him. A jockey is found dead in the locker room, and Bill and Myrna are called in to crack the case. By that, of course, I mean Bill has three times the screen time as his wife. He does all the sleuthing, has all the brains, and leaves Myrna to joke around about fashion, Asta, and alcohol. She performs one deed of heroism, but afterwards, she faints and gets brought back to reality by a kiss from her husband and a gift of jewelry. I’m not kidding.
Louise Beavers, a good actress, was unfortunately relegated to “Hattie McDaniels rejects” roles after her dramatic turn in Imitation of Life. She plays the Charles’s dumb maid, and it’s almost painful to watch. If you recognize the very pretty secretary and think she looks a lot like Donna Reed, you’re right. In 1941, she was still taking fifth-billing roles, and this one doesn’t give her much to do besides sit there and look pretty. You’ll also see Henry O’Neill, Stella Adler, and Sam Levene as the police lieutenant working closely with Bill. This isn’t a very strong installment in the series, so if you want to skip it and stick with Another Thin Man, that might be a good idea.
DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. When William Powell is on the carousel and starts to feel dizzy, the camera has a kaleidoscope effect for a couple of minutes, and that will make you sick. In other words, “Don’t Look, Mom!”
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thanks "Juhi Thaker" for posting!
More Donna Reed movies here!
More Myrna Loy movies here!
In this one, Bill’s interest in horseracing catches up with him. A jockey is found dead in the locker room, and Bill and Myrna are called in to crack the case. By that, of course, I mean Bill has three times the screen time as his wife. He does all the sleuthing, has all the brains, and leaves Myrna to joke around about fashion, Asta, and alcohol. She performs one deed of heroism, but afterwards, she faints and gets brought back to reality by a kiss from her husband and a gift of jewelry. I’m not kidding.
Louise Beavers, a good actress, was unfortunately relegated to “Hattie McDaniels rejects” roles after her dramatic turn in Imitation of Life. She plays the Charles’s dumb maid, and it’s almost painful to watch. If you recognize the very pretty secretary and think she looks a lot like Donna Reed, you’re right. In 1941, she was still taking fifth-billing roles, and this one doesn’t give her much to do besides sit there and look pretty. You’ll also see Henry O’Neill, Stella Adler, and Sam Levene as the police lieutenant working closely with Bill. This isn’t a very strong installment in the series, so if you want to skip it and stick with Another Thin Man, that might be a good idea.
DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. When William Powell is on the carousel and starts to feel dizzy, the camera has a kaleidoscope effect for a couple of minutes, and that will make you sick. In other words, “Don’t Look, Mom!”
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thanks "Juhi Thaker" for posting!
More Donna Reed movies here!
More Myrna Loy movies here!