Alias Nick and Nora: The Thin Man Movies Ranked

You don’t scold, you don’t nag, and you look far too pretty in the mornings

So says Nick Charles to his wife Nora, as they go on to solve murders and mayhem across the country with their dog Asta.

The Thin Man franchise ran from the mid-1930s to the late 1940s and starred Myrna Loy and William Powell as Nick and Nora Charles, a crime-fighting, murder mystery-solving married couple. Nick Charles was a former police detective who married Nora Charles, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist.

After their marriage, Nick essentially retired to help manage her businesses, but of course he gets roped into all kinds of murder investigations and becomes quite famous nationwide as he solves each of these progressively more difficult crimes.

The Thin Man series excelled because it did everything really well. It had fantastic performances, the cast had amazing chemistry, the mysteries kept you guessing, and they were hilariously funny with lots of slapstick gags and witty banter.

William Powell and Myrna Loy had one of the best onscreen chemistries in cinema history. They absolutely crackled when they were together, which is why there were so many films in this franchise.

Of course, as with any franchise, some films are better than others. Here’s a ranking of all six Thin Man films, starting from the bottom and working up to number one.

#6: Song of the Thin Man (1948)

Song of the Thin Man Official Trailer #1 – Keenan Wynn Movie (1947) HD

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When I say this is the worst of the series, that’s not necessarily saying this is a terrible motion picture. Even the worst Thin Man movie is better than most other mystery films of the time. It just had a high bar when it came to this franchise.

This was directed by Edward Buzzell, his first directorial film in the franchise. The director who was known for the series had unfortunately passed away after the fourth film. Being the last entry, it just wasn’t quite up to standard with the other ones. It’s not a bad movie. It has a decent mystery, and the chemistry is still there between William Powell and Myrna Loy. Unfortunately, at this point, the franchise was just a little tired, and they didn’t bring in the best writers they could have.

One odd element is how the series uses Leon Ames again after he had already played a character in the previous film. Had he appeared in one of the first entries in the series, it would have been more forgivable. However, to have the same actor playing two different characters in back-to-back films is very strange when the series had always kept a very straight continuity.

Overall, this one is a fine entry. The mystery is not amazing, but we’re mostly watching this franchise for Nick and Nora and their interactions, and we still get a lot of good stuff with that. It’s worth checking out if you’re watching through the series, just don’t expect the quality of story that was in the other ones.

This was the first Thin Man film to actually lose money. It earned $1.4 million in the US and Canada and $92,000 elsewhere, resulting in a loss of $128,000. After that, the studio axed the franchise, and that was the end of the Thin Man series.

#5: Shadow of the Thin Man (1941)

Shadow of the Thin Man Official Trailer #1 – Henry O’Neill Movie (1941) HD

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This film was directed by series mainstay W.S. Van Dyke, who brought these characters to life in the first place. Overall, this is not a bad film. It just doesn’t have the magic that the other ones did. The interplay between Nick and Nora was good as always, and we got some fun scenes with their son as well.

Where it fell short was the murder mystery itself, which was just a little bit bland. One thing the Thin Man franchise consistently managed was making each of its murder cases genuinely interesting. They brought in odd plot points or quirky victims. Unfortunately, Shadow of the Thin Man felt more standard, more like your typical noir murder mystery of the 1940s.

That being said, it has a good third act. The climax and the reveal of the killer is unexpected. You don’t really see it coming. It’s also great to see Sam Levene back as Lieutenant Abrams, a character from a previous film. He played the bumbling cop perfectly, and he’s always fun to watch. It just wasn’t the high watermark of the series.

The film earned $1.4 million in the US and Canada and $848,000 elsewhere, resulting in a net profit of $769,000.

Interestingly, Shadow of the Thin Man was very eagerly welcomed at the time because it had come two years after the previous outing, and it hit theaters just two weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbor. It would be three years before Myrna Loy would make another film, as she left Hollywood to volunteer for the war effort with the Red Cross.

#4: Another Thin Man (1939)

Another Thin Man Official Trailer #1 – Myrna Loy Movie (1939) HD

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This one was a lot of fun. Again directed by W.S. Van Dyke, this was the third film in the series and was based on Dashiell Hammett’s story The Farewell Murder. It introduced the Charles’ son, Nicky Jr., who appears as a baby, and the film is delightful.

Interestingly, it was originally intended to be called Return of the Thin Man, but there was controversy over that title. What many people don’t actually know is that William Powell’s character of Nick Charles is not the Thin Man. The Thin Man was actually the murder victim from the first movie. So they couldn’t say Return of the Thin Man because that character is dead. They had to say Another Thin Man, as in another Thin Man case. If you talk to most people today, they actually view William Powell as the Thin Man.

This story is one that I really like. Nick and Nora are back in New York and they’re invited to spend the weekend on Long Island by Colonel MacFay, the administrator of Nora Charles’s fortune. Of course, all kinds of shenanigans happen. There’s a murder they have to solve, and it’s a lot of fun.

What’s interesting is that it took the action away from the big city for the first two-thirds of the movie before returning to the city for the big climax. This one was also enjoyable because it had some very quirky characters. We see a lot of people from Nick’s time on the police, people that he sent to prison, or as they say in the film, “sent me up the river.”

We also see the return of Nat Pendleton as Lieutenant Guild from the first Thin Man movie, and it was always enjoyable seeing him again. I liked him in the first one. He portrayed this tough police investigator who was also a little bit bumbling, which was the standard in comedy mysteries at the time. The gentleman detective is brilliant, whereas the police are a little bit bumbling.

This is a great movie. The Rotten Tomatoes score is at 85%, and very rightfully so. This film totaled $2.2 million, with $1.5 million coming from the US and $700,000 from international markets, returning a profit of $394,000.

#3: The Thin Man (1934)

The Thin Man Official Trailer #1 – William Powell Movie (1934) HD

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The seminal classic, the first film in the series. Directed by W.S. Van Dyke and released in 1934, this spawned the entire franchise.

I want to reiterate that just because this film is number three does not mean it isn’t good or doesn’t belong at the top. For the sake of ranking, I had to put it at number three, but this is a fantastic story. The comedy is golden, the mystery is intriguing. It’s funny, it’s exciting, and it has some genuine suspense and tension, especially when we see Nick Charles going through an abandoned warehouse in the middle of the night.

It was a pre-Code film, but it’s surprisingly clean. There’s not really a lot of the scandalous content you saw in some pre-Code movies. Even though this was William Powell and Myrna Loy’s first outing in the Thin Man franchise as these characters, their chemistry couldn’t be better. It’s a classic of the genre, and rightfully so.

Looking at the box office, it grossed $1.4 million, with $880,000 coming from the US and Canada and $605,000 in foreign markets, resulting in a net profit of $729,000, which was a lot of money back then. This of course began and spawned the franchise.

An interesting fact about the trailer: it contains specially filmed footage in which Nick Charles (William Powell) is seen on the cover of a Dashiell Hammett novel. Nick Charles steps out of the cover to talk to fellow detective Philo Vance, who is also played by William Powell in another franchise. Nick mentions that he hasn’t seen Vance since The Kennel Murder Case, a film in which William Powell played a detective, released in 1933.

#2: The Thin Man Goes Home (1945)

The Thin Man Goes Home (1944) Original Trailer [FHD]

Directed by Richard Thorpe. Starring William Powell, Myrna Loy and Lucile Watson.

The Thin Man Goes Home was released in 1945 and has absolutely no business being as good as it ended up being for a fifth film in a franchise. Normally by the time a franchise hits its fifth installment, everyone’s kind of on autopilot, just cashing in the paycheck.

That being said, The Thin Man Goes Home, for me, is the second-best Thin Man story. In some ways I almost wish it was the final film in the series because there’s so much good chemistry and such a strong story.

We see Nick Charles going back to his hometown, and we find out that he grew up in this small Mayberry-style town. His father wanted him to be a doctor. He ended up becoming a policeman instead, and they had a falling out. This film is about Nick Charles trying to impress his father, trying to prove that he didn’t waste his life and that he’s really good at what he does.

We see Nora Charles helping to solve the crime, but we also see her trying to support her husband and boost him in the town, telling people, “Hey, this famous detective is here. He’s solving this crime.” A lot of the comedy revolves around the misunderstandings that happen, and it’s genuinely funny.

It’s interesting seeing Nick Charles interact with people from his past. In a lot of ways, we see Nick and Nora also grown up a little bit. They’re the high-swinging couple in the first movie, staying out all night drinking, getting right up to solve crime. Here, they’ve slowed down a little bit. There’s a touch of old married couple comedy, and it’s really endearing.

It really takes Nick Charles full circle. He started his career at the height of 1930s high society New York, solving crimes for the rich and famous. In this movie, he’s back in old-town Mayberry, solving a crime in his hometown, reconciling with his father. By the time the credits roll, he’s solved a great mystery in his town, and he and his father are back on good terms. It feels like a natural end to the franchise, honestly. Part of me does wish that was the last film because it ends our characters on such good notes.

This particular film earned almost $1.8 million in the US and Canada and $1 million elsewhere, resulting in a net profit of $501,000.

The Thin Man Goes Home was Myrna Loy’s only wartime picture because she had been working in the volunteer sector for the war effort. The cocktail shaker, a staple prop from previous films (because obviously the joke was Nick and Nora were always drinking), is not in this movie.

It’s replaced by this running gag about Nick not drinking because he doesn’t want to offend his parents, who don’t believe in drinking. So he has this giant flask that contains only apple cider, and he’s swigging apple cider throughout the movie. There are a lot of really funny moments because of that.

According to The Hollywood Reporter in 1944, wartime liquor rationing was in effect, and the producer decided to eliminate the heavy drinking that had been integral to Nick and Nora’s daily life in previous films. They didn’t want it to seem like they were taking advantage of people or promoting a lavish lifestyle while everyone else was making sacrifices. In a sense, Nick and Nora were experiencing the war alongside everyone else.

#1: After the Thin Man (1936)

After the Thin Man Official Trailer #1 – James Stewart Movie (1936) HD

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This film was released in 1936 and was directed by W.S. Van Dyke. In my opinion, this was the high watermark of the series. It is an excellent film with great comedy, a great cast, a really good mystery, and a fantastic climax. Overall, everything good about the Thin Man series is wrapped up in this film.

It is why it’s over the first one for me and even over The Thin Man Goes Home. Everything just meshes really well with our characters.

This film also famously stars James Stewart in a supporting role, and he’s really, really good in this. His character is fantastic. He plays to his strengths as an actor, and all his scenes opposite William Powell and Myrna Loy are just excellent. They go together really well.

William Powell was a fantastic actor because he could do drama, he could do comedy. I would say he’s probably one of the best actors that we’ve had in Hollywood, and it’s just an absolute shame that he’s not better remembered today.

Definitely check out After the Thin Man. If you enjoyed the first one, everything you liked is back in this one, and they throw in some extra elements. There are some great laugh-out-loud moments with the characters.

We also see the appearance of Lieutenant Abrams in this one, who returns in a later film, so it’s fun to see him here and then again later.

The reception for this movie was excellent. The film was nominated for an Oscar in 1937 for Best Writing and Screenplay, and it also has a 100% Rotten Tomatoes score. Both of those are completely deserved. It absolutely earns that 100% score. I gave it five stars in my review.

It definitely deserved that nomination for the screenplay Oscar because it is so snappily written with great witty dialogue.

This film’s worldwide total was $3.1 million, with almost $2 million coming from the US and Canada and $1.1 million from elsewhere, turning in a profit of $1.5 million, which in the 1930s was incredible.

It also spawned an hour-long radio adaptation presented by CBS’s Radio Theater, and William Powell and Myrna Loy reprised their roles, which was not uncommon for the time.