Shadow of the Thin Man

"What really worries me is that jockey."

"Yes. Still dead,, huh?"

Nick (Powell) and Nora (Loy) Charles go to the racetrack for a relaxing, kid-free day.  When they arrive at the track, everyone assumes they are there to help the police investigate the murder of a jockey.  Lieutenant Abrams (Levene) is the lead investigator on the case, and asks Nick for help.  Later that evening, they are approached by Major Jason Sculley (O'Neill) and reporter Paul Clarke (Nelson) to take down a corrupt gambling ring, led by businessman Link Stephens (Smith).  That evening Paul is found in Stephens' office with a gun and the body of reporter Whitey Barrow (Baxter).

Abrams arrests Paul immediately, but Nick and Nora do not believe he is guilty.  Paul's girlfriend Molly (Reed) worked for Stephens and gave him the key to the office to find evidence against Stephens.  Whitey had a laundry list of enemies and people that wanted him dead, including Link's girlfriend Claire Porter (Adler) and his second in command Fred Macy (Anthony).  With the help of their faithful dog Asta, can Nick and Nora find the real killer before anyone else gets hurt?


This is the fourth film in The Thin Man film series (following The Thin Man, After the Thin Man, and Another Thin Man).  The story picks up a few years after the previous film, and Nick Jr. is now a little boy, reveling in his parents favorite past times.  He is played by Dickie Hall in this film, but other actors portrayed him the remaining films.

William Powell and Myrna Loy have excellent chemistry and appeared in 14 films.  Once again they are great as Nick and Nora.  They have a natural banter and make their relationship and sleuthing careers look easy.  Once again they are surrounded by a colorful group of people, all with strong motives for murder.  Unlike most detective movies, the real culprit is not obvious from the beginning, and you can enjoy the case with Nick and Nora.

The film is still well-written and acted, even on the fourth entry in the series.  I look forward to watching the final two films.

Shadow of the Thin Man (1941) 97 minutes
Director: W.S. Van Dyke II
Starring: William Powell as Nick Charles
Myrna Loy as Nora Charles
Barry Nelson as Paul Clarke
Donna Reed as Molly
Sam Levene as Lieutenant Abrams
Alan Baxter as "Whitey" Barrow
Henry O'Neill as Major Jason I. Sculley
Stella Adler as Claire Porter
Loring Smith as "Link" Stephens
Joseph Anthony as Fred Macy
Louise Beavers as Stella
Dickie Hall as Nick Jr.