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For me, the clincher is that Nicky Junior is played by Dean Stockwell. You may know that name, and you probably know that face. If you’re a Battlestar Galactica fan, you’ll remember him as the evil Brother Cavil. If you’re a fan of Blue Velvet, you’ll remember him as the Kabuki-styled Ben. If you’re a fan of Quantum Leap, you’ll have fond memories of him. And if you know him from all of those, especially Blue Velvet, there’s nothing but weirdness during this scene in Song of the Thin Man. (By the way, watch what you say on Twitter, because I found out that there are lots of freaky spam accounts that target words like spanking. Oh boy.) Stockwell’s not bad here, but his character is pointless, forgotten after the spanking scene until the very end, and even there, it’s just to see him sleeping with the Charles’s dog, Asta.

But the real problem with the film is the jazz storyline, if only because the dialogue makes no sense now, and I honestly don’t know how it made sense in 1947. I can imagine that, when writing the film or even pitching it, the idea that Nick and Nora would have to solve a mystery involving a culture that they were completely unfamiliar with was awesome. Unfortunately, an idea being written down on paper and the idea being visualized sometimes don’t work out the way we want it to. Powell and Loy are, as ever, incredibly fascinating to watch, but even in Song of the Thin Man, it doesn’t feel like they’re given enough time to hang out, aside from the very beginning and the very end. Powell gets the lion’s share of the work - not that it’s a bad thing, as he’s awfully charismatic by himself - but you wish he’d get more time with Loy.

Song of the Thin Man is the end of the Thin Man series, as mentioned previously. Powell and Loy wouldn’t ever have such highs in their careers, you could argue, as they did when they were Nick and Nora. But most actors would envy those highs, as Nick and Nora are not just some of the best characters ever put on film, but they are among the most influential, even going as far as influencing TV shows. Moonlighting and Bones are two of the most notable programs that are arguably touched by the gift of Nick and Nora’s banter. Even in this last film, watching Powell and Loy go toe-to-toe reminds you of one of the great pleasures in life. Even here, when just watching Nick and Nora at home, you have to wonder why life couldn’t be that much fun for all of us. Song of the Thin Man may not be great, but giving us that pleasure is present enough.

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