IMDb > The Thin Man (1934)
The Thin Man
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The Thin Man (1934) More at IMDbPro »

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The Thin Man (1934) -- Comedy-mystery featuring Nick and Nora Charles: a former detective and his rich, playful wife. They solve a murder case mostly for the fun of it.
The Thin Man (1934) -- MyMovieScripts.com - Trailer (Flash)
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Overview

User Rating:
8.0/10   11,053 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 8% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
W.S. Van Dyke
Writers:
Albert Hackett (screenplay) and
Frances Goodrich (screenplay) ...
(more)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Thin Man on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
25 May 1934 (USA) more
Genre:
Comedy | Crime | Drama | Mystery | Romance more
Tagline:
A laugh tops every thrilling moment!
Plot:
Comedy-mystery featuring Nick and Nora Charles: a former detective and his rich, playful wife. They solve a murder case mostly for the fun of it. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 1 win more
NewsDesk:
(10 articles)
Watch: My Dear Enemy at MoMA
 (From Tribeca Film. 18 November 2009, 10:00 PM, PST)
What are Your Favorite Winter Holiday Themed Movies?
 (From Rope Of Silicon. 26 October 2009, 2:39 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
'The Thin Man' is still as fast-paced, stylish, sexy and hilarious as it ever was more (97 total)
US TV Schedule:
Sat. Nov. 2812:00 PMTCM   

Cast

  (in credits order) (verified as complete)

William Powell ... Nick

Myrna Loy ... Nora

Maureen O'Sullivan ... Dorothy
Nat Pendleton ... Guild
Minna Gombell ... Mimi
Porter Hall ... MacCaulay
Henry Wadsworth ... Tommy
William Henry ... Gilbert
Harold Huber ... Nunheim

Cesar Romero ... Chris
Natalie Moorhead ... Julia Wolf
Edward Brophy ... Morelli
Edward Ellis ... Wynant
Cyril Thornton ... Tanner
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Asta ... Asta (uncredited)
Will Aubrey ... Minor Role (uncredited)
William Augustin ... Wynant's Butler (uncredited)
Polly Bailey ... Janitress (uncredited)
Arthur Belasco ... Detective (uncredited)
Brooks Benedict ... Dance Extra (uncredited)
Tui Bow ... Stenographer (uncredited)
Raymond Brown ... Dr. Walton (uncredited)
Ruth Channing ... Mrs. Jorgenson (uncredited)
Jack Cheatham ... Detective (uncredited)
Clay Clement ... Quinn (uncredited)
Nick Copeland ... Reporter (uncredited)

Pat Flaherty ... Fighter at Party (uncredited)
Douglas Fowley ... Taxi Driver (uncredited)
Christian J. Frank ... Plainclothesman (uncredited)
Kenneth Gibson ... Apartment Clerk (uncredited)
Creighton Hale ... Reporter (uncredited)
Sherry Hall ... Taxi Driver (uncredited)
Edward Hearn ... Detective (uncredited)
Robert Homans ... Billy the Detective (uncredited)
Jack Irwin ... 'Face' Tefler (uncredited)
Thomas E. Jackson ... Reporter (uncredited)
Sydney Jarvis ... Witness (uncredited)
Tiny Jones ... Woman buying Newspaper (uncredited)
Kenner G. Kemp ... Restaurant Table Extra (uncredited)
John Larkin ... Porter (uncredited)
Dixie Laughton ... Janitress (uncredited)
Walter Long ... Stutsy Burke (uncredited)
Fred Malatesta ... Joe - Headwaiter (uncredited)
William H. O'Brien ... Bartender (uncredited)
Frank O'Connor ... Detective Waiter (uncredited)
Henry Otho ... Detective Waiter (uncredited)
Garry Owen ... Detective (uncredited)
Lee Phelps ... Detective (uncredited)
Alexander Pollard ... Waiter hired for Dinner (uncredited)
Albert Pollet ... Waiter hired for Dinner (uncredited)
Bob Reeves ... Cop (uncredited)
Bert Roach ... Foster (uncredited)
Rolfe Sedan ... Waiter (uncredited)
Gertrude Short ... Marion (uncredited)
Lee Shumway ... Plainclothesman (uncredited)
Pietro Sosso ... Butler (uncredited)
Ben Taggart ... Police Captain (uncredited)
Phil Tead ... Reporter (uncredited)
George Templeton ... Reporter (uncredited)
Harry Tenbrook ... Guest at Nick's Party (uncredited)
Leo White ... Leo - Waiter (uncredited)
Charles Williams ... Fighter Manager (uncredited)
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Directed by
W.S. Van Dyke 
 
Writing credits
Albert Hackett (screenplay) and
Frances Goodrich (screenplay)

Dashiell Hammett (novel)

Produced by
Hunt Stromberg .... producer
 
Original Music by
William Axt  (as Dr. William Axt)
 
Cinematography by
James Wong Howe 
 
Film Editing by
Robert Kern  (as Robert J. Kern)
 
Art Direction by
Cedric Gibbons 
 
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Lesley Selander .... assistant director (uncredited)
 
Art Department
David Townsend .... associate art director
Edwin B. Willis .... associate art director
 
Sound Department
Douglas Shearer .... recording director
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Ted Allen .... still photographer (uncredited)
 
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Dolly Tree .... wardrobe
 
Music Department
Wayne Allen .... orchestrator (uncredited)
Maurice De Packh .... orchestrator (uncredited)
David Snell .... orchestrator (uncredited)
Jack Virgil .... orchestrator (uncredited)
 
Other crew
Howard Dietz .... press agent (uncredited)
 
Crew verified as complete


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Additional Details

Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents
Runtime:
91 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Black and White
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)
Certification:
UK:A (original rating) | Netherlands:AL (DVD rating) | Canada:PG (video rating) | South Korea:12 (2003) | Sweden:11 (DVD rating) | Argentina:13 | Finland:(Banned) (1934-1938) | Finland:K-16 (1938) | USA:Approved (PCA #1304-R: 26 August 1935) | Germany:6 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | UK:U
Company:
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
American Film Institute Catalog of Feature Films 1931-40 erroneously identifies Huey White as playing the role of 'Face' Tefler, but it's actually Jack Irwin. more
Goofs:
Continuity: Nick walks into a bedroom with an ice bucket full of ice. Minutes later, he walks out of the bedroom but the ice has melted. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Tanner: Your daughter's here, Mr. Wynant. Mr. Wynant! Mr. Wynant!
Clyde Wynant, the thin man: Haven't you got any more sense than to shout at me like that?
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Miracle (2004) more
Soundtrack:
O Christmas Tree more

FAQ

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User Comments

   (Comment on this title)
34 out of 41 people found the following comment useful.
'The Thin Man' is still as fast-paced, stylish, sexy and hilarious as it ever was, 20 July 2004
Author: Kieran Kenney from California

Where to begin? I guess I'll start off by saying that this is one of my favorite films of all time. I first saw it on TV years ago (I was probably eleven or twelve) and I still totally love it. Every time I see it, I feel like I get more out of it. I feel like I see AND hear more than I did before.

The story goes that creepy Clyde Wynant (wonderful character actor Edward Ellis) wants to give some bonds to his daughter Dorothy (Maureen O'Sullivan) as a wedding present. But his mistress Julia (Natalie Moorhead) has gotten rid of them. When Julia turns up murdered, Wynant is the obvious suspect, but nobody can find him.

Enter Nick and Nora Charles (William Powell and Myrna Loy), a detective and heiress, just recently married, and clearly very much in love. Nick finds himself pulled into the case, with everyone around him urging him into it. He's reluctant: it's his honeymoon after all. But sure enough he's persuaded to take the case, solves it and exposes the murderer at a climactic dinner party.

Bill Powell and Myrna Loy have astounding chemistry. As husband and wife, they are equals, equally hard-drinking, equally witty, equally fun-loving. They have the same sense of adventure, the same stubbornness, the same competitiveness. In so many scenes, Powell will saw something in his playful, semi-childish, half-drunk sort of way, and Loy will respond with some fabulously delivered retort, in a manner that is almost like a world-wary mother saying to her child 'Now, now, Junior...' It's hard to describe exactly. If anything, I suppose you could say it's deceptively simple. It's one of those things you have to see for yourself.

The rest of the cast is good. I particularly love Minna Gombell, Mynant's ex-wife Mimi, with her latin boyfriend (Cesar Romero) and her tight, shiny black dresses with white fur-lined princess sleeves. Slight, ernest and bespeckeled, William Henry turns in a riotous performance as Gilbert, Mimi and Clyde Wynant's son and Dorothy's brother. A Kinsey-lke figure, the role of Gilbert is one of those bookish, overly-analytical Hollywood stock characters who try to explain other character's subconscious reasons for their actions, and who give strangers peculiar looks at parties. Henry makes the character believable, and he stands out as one of the characters in the movie. Gerturde Short, in an uncredited role, gives a good performance as well. Her delivery of the "I don't like crooks, and if I did like'em..." line is unforgettable. (If you blink, you'll miss Tui Lorraine Bow, friend and step-mother of It Girl Clara Bow! Bert Roach of The Crowd has a small role as well.)

For a modestly-budgeted, rapidly shot, b-level production, The Thin Man is a classy and stylish film. The clothes, assembled by the genial Dolly Tree, are great, and make this a must-see anyone even remotely interested in period fashions. The art deco sets are quite fine, if modest and at times a bit sparse. The editing is good, as is the fairly simplistic photography. Woody Van Dyke, the director, always worked fast, and Myrna Loy recalled that all the movies they worked together on were made at frantic pace. Part of the reason that The Thin Man moves so quickly is the fact that production was so hurried.

The Thin Man gets a ten out of ten from me for being one of the best films ever produced, and one of my absolute favorites of all time.

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