Considering that there’s only one ‘Thin Man’ book from Dashiell Hammett it’s amazing what a cottage industry the franchise became what with six films and a television series. In the 30’s and 40’s there were few that could compete with William Powell and Myrna Loy as Nick and Nora and their Prohibition era crime tales. It’s a series of stories (though really only a couple are worth a damn) that has been dormant for the better part of sixty years and only a few times has Hollywood hinted at resurrecting them. For a good reason. The name recognition’s not there and anyone who was a fanboy of the material is most likely infirm or one with the Force.
Now it appears Rob Marshall is parlaying his arrival on tentpole turf (he directed that Pirate movie they’re advertising) into more high profile non-musicals. Namely… The Thin Man. With Johnny Depp as Nick Charles. While there’s nothing wrong with Johnny Depp headlining yet another new big flick, I’m personally tired of him. He’s proven lately that he’s far from King Midas on creative, financial, or any other real level. He’s even made Jack Sparrow sort of boring. Which is Herculean.
It’s a great fun story with intrigue and laughs and plentiful drunken carousing and if handled as a smaller throwback sort of film it could be great. I just fear it’ll try and be something bigger. And a lot depends on who portrays Nora. It can’t be an A-Lister we currently have because there’s not enough spunk out there right now.
Either way, there’s not even a script yet. Just fancy names. Give the book or the first film a look and think of who the best Nora would be. I’m stumped.
