classicsoncall I've always wondered why a movie dust up in a restaurant or saloon between a couple of patrons has to eventually involve the entire place. It happens all the time in pictures and it happens here as well. Oh well, I guess it helped to stir things up when there was a lull in the action.They say the Thin Man movies got weaker as the series progressed but I think this one holds up pretty well as the fourth entry in the line up. That's not to say that I thought all of it was credible. In a real life situation for example, who would ever be led to believe that there was a discarded gun in the bottom of a shower drain? Really? Nick Charles came to that conclusion by eyeballing the angle of a bullet that killed a jockey? Sorry folks, I'm just not buying that one at all.And gee, what was Major Sculley (Henry O'Neill) thinking when he brought Nick in on the murder case? The Charles reputation by now was well known far and wide, so why even take the chance? Goofing up on Whitey Barrow's room number was just the icing on the cake for old Nick to finish up this story Charlie Chan style, pulling the resolution out of his hat with some panache and flourish that not one viewer could have figured out in a month of Sundays.But you know, that's what made the Thin Man series so much fun. The repartee and chemistry between William Powell and Myrna Loy was never better, and even Asta got to show off his acting chops with a meatier role than he'd had in the past. Where the shadow business of the title comes into play I'm still thinking about, but not that much.

Spondonman Another good series entry [4/6], more sedate than its predecessors but still a quality funny whodunnit, again set in Red Herring City.Nick finds himself embroiled in a murder case after a racetrack killing leads to another implicating an "obviously" decent guy, trying to unravel the murderer from a long list of "guilty" suspects. Nick's deductions again spring a surprise, culminating with a detail only discovered near the end of the picture. The funniest scene is the outbreak of fisticuffs in the restaurant - I'm glad I never got a dog, cute as Asta was! Again Nick Jr. was sidelined for the second half, probably so as not to complicate the plot further. Donna Reed's second film.With a beautiful print and the chorus of "Why, It's Nick Charles!" ringing in my ears I found this one to be almost up to par with the first three and one I certainly hope to watch again.

WinBBunny and beyond, as Nick & Nora Charles (William Powell, Myrna Loy) are caught up in the death of a jockey quite by accident. The bodies begin to fall after that, as murder to cover up tracks, the crime syndicate, crossed lovers and crooked officials enter the picture before the showdown in the Charles' apartment sorts out the guilty from the innocent. I found this movie to be one of the more entertaining of the "Thin Man" series, with a pair of memorably funny scenes: when Nora discovers the joys of wrestling (and gets caught up in that excitement) and the restaurant fight scene. All in all, it is an entertaining movie, but then I could expect no less from the fine professional acting of both Powell and Loy.

estabansmythe This fourth of the six Thin Man movies is one of the most fun, most enjoyable. Powell and Loy are terrific, as always, and Donna Reed is beautiful in an early role. But it's Sam Levine as police Lt Abrams who steals the show. It's murder at the race track. Who killed the jockey? See it and find out. And enjoy!