EW reviews ''The Complete Thin Man''

EW reviews ”The Complete Thin Man”

Until William Powell and Myrna Loy swanned in as husband and wife Nick and Nora Charles of the Thin Man mystery-comedy series, ”marriage was something that movie characters were trying to get into or get out of,” notes Kathleen Turner in a supplemental doc on Loy. ”Nick and Nora showed there could be life within marriage.” Few Mr.-and-Mrs. teams have twinkled so effervescently on screen. Nick’s a detective who solves murders and swigs martinis, while heiress Nora helps with the legwork and cracks wise. (Meanwhile, pet terrier Asta provides Oscar-caliber supporting work.) Powell and Loy’s irrefutable chemistry is the stuff of history: Besides these, they made eight other films, a screen-pair record. None is better than the first Thin Man, an irreverent classic (they drink a lot) that still draws belly laughs. It was a bad idea to amp up the mystery and roll back the booze in five increasingly formulaic sequels, but this set — which includes MGM shorts, cartoons, trailers, radio shows, docs on the stars (though not for Asta — woof!), and a bizarre 1958 TV adaptation with Peter Lawford — makes an unbeatably classy wedding gift. Thin Man: A
After the Thin Man: A-
Another Thin Man: B+
Shadow of the Thin Man, The Thin Man Goes Home: B
Song of the Thin Man: B-