Another Thin Man (1939)

Another Thin Man - 1939

Coming up next is 1939's "Another Thin Man", the third of six films that feature Nick and Nora Charles and their dog Asta as they try and solve a murder that hits close to home.

The film's cast includes William Powell, Myrna Loy, Virginia Grey, Otto Kruger, C. Aubrey Smith, Ruth Hussey, Nat Pendleton, Patric Knowles, Tom Neal, Phyllis Gordon, Sheldon Leonard, Don Costello, Harry Bellaver, Marjorie Main, Muriel Hutchinson, and Asta.

Nick and Nora Charles are back in New York for some rest and relaxation.  They've taken a suite at a hotel and arrive with a large amount of luggage.

They've also brought something else: baby Nick Jr.  The baby takes Asta's bone, and Asta is none too pleased with him!

Nora gets a call summoning her and Nick to the country estate of Colonel MacFay, who controls Nora's business investments.  It's a strange trip into the country.  They encounter bodies in the road and armed guards at the gates.

Asta also things it's strange when he sees MacFay's daughter's dog, Jessie.  He runs under the staircase and hides until the coast is clear.

MacFay tells them the reason he's summoned them.  He thinks someone is out to murder him, and he wants Nick on the case finding out who it is.  He has a pretty good idea who it might be, but he wants Nick to make sure.

Unfortunately before Nick can find out who wants MacFay dead, the man is shot and killed during the night.

The list of suspects is long.  It includes a disgruntled former employee and his girlfriend.  Could they have wanted revenge and murdered MacFay?

MacFay's housekeeper, Mrs. Bellam, also stands to benefit from his death.  She's a beneficiary of his estate and expects to get a large sum of money.

His secretary Freddie Coleman is also a person of interest in the case.

As is Dudley Horn, the fiance of MacFay's daughter.  Horn is also a man that MacFay disapproved of.

MacFay's daughter Lois is even questioned and not entirely out of suspicion in the minds of the investigators.

Curiously, even the woman hired to take care of Nick Jr. is regarded as a suspect after she mysteriously disappears following the murder.

To complicate matters, Asta absconds with a piece of evidence and leads the police on quite the strenuous chase around the estate grounds before he gives it up.

Never fear.  Nick is on hand to piece together all the clues and ferret out the murderer.  Can he do it before the killer strikes again?

Cast rundown:

   William Powell.................................Nick Charles

   Myrna Loy.......................................Nora Charles

   Virginia Grey...................................Lois MacFay

   Otto Kruger.....................................Van Slack

   C. Aubrey Smith...............................Colonel MacFay

   Ruth Hussey....................................Dorothy Waters

   Nat Pendleton..................................Lieutenant Guild

   Patric Knowles.................................Dudley Horn

   Tom Neal.........................................Freddie Coleman

   Phyllis Gordon..................................Mrs. Bellam

   Sheldon Leonard..............................Phil Church

   Don Costello...................................."Diamond Back" Vogel

   Harry Bellaver.................................."Creeps" Binder

   Marjorie Main...................................Mrs. Dolley

   Muriel Hutchinson.............................Smitty

   Asta................................................Asta

And that's all for Another Thin Man.  Nick and Nora are at their best when their verbally sparring with one another.  In one scene, Nora bests Nick by arriving at a location before he does and conducting a little investigation of her own.  "Madam, how long have you been leading this double life?" he asks her.  "Just since we've been married," she answers amusingly.

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