The
sixth and final Nick and Nora Charles mystery finds the lush detective couple
(William Powell and Myrna Loy) investigating the death of a bandleader aboard a
cruise ship. They do some digging and go
undercover on the dime tour of the bandstand circuit posing as musicians. The couple then go looking for an antique gun
that could possibly be the murder weapon.
Directed
by Edward (At the Circus) Buzzell, Song of the Thin Man benefits from a fine
supporting cast. It’s fun seeing a young
Dean Stockwell as Nick Jr. He holds his
own with Powell and Loy and gets some laughs too. Keenan Wynn is also amusing as a wisecracking
musician who helps Nick and Nora on their case.
Patricia Morison, Jayne Meadows, and Marie Windsor all make memorable
impressions as well.
I
don’t know if the franchise ever got credit for allowing its characters age
believably. Not only that, they let the
character of Nick Jr. grow up a little bit.
The domestic scenes of the three of them (and their loyal dog Asta)
together are among the best in the movie and indeed the entire series. I especially liked the scene where Nora goads
Nick into spanking Nick Jr. and he just can’t bear to do it. (Flashbacks of the kid being born are
projected on his bottom.)
This
doesn’t have the feel of the sixth entry in a long-running franchise. It’s much livelier than any of the other
sequels and Buzzell keeps the quips coming fast and furious, with many of them
hitting the mark. (My favorite was when
Nick lamented the “death” of his bottle of Scotch.) Some stretches work better than others, but
there’s enough genuinely funny moments here (like when Nick and Nora use a
bunch of nonsensical slang to ingratiate themselves with a bunch of musicians)
to make this the best entry since the first one.
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