vert001 William Powell and Myrna Loy made six THIN MAN movies together (and about seven others) and by my estimate, STAR OF MIDNIGHT is better than half of them and about on the level of the third (the THIN MAN series pretty steadily deteriorated as it went along). Only the original THIN MAN had been made before MIDNIGHT yet no one doubted that it was a copy of that brilliant and seminal effort. Still, it was more the common presence of William Powell as the lead 'detective' that provoked comparisons. The genre itself was popular at the time. Two amateur detectives personally involved with one another run about wisecracking and pratfalling as they try to solve some murder case. T'was all the rage in the thirties. Heck, Ginger Rogers had done it before opposite Lyle Talbot (in the B-movie A SHRIEK IN THE NIGHT) using the more common template of two reporters doing the investigating. In a few years, Howard Hawks would show that even THE FRONT PAGE could fit into the mold. STAR OF MIDNIGHT is one of the best examples of this kind of film, and I believe it would be better appreciated if it wasn't compared with the absolute best of the breed, THE THIN MAN.There's a decent balance between the comedy and the convoluted mystery elements in STAR OF MIDNIGHT. Powell is playing the character that he had already portrayed multiple times and would often portray again in the future, a debonair, hard-drinking yet always alert amateur sleuth with a sardonic tongue and attitude. Outside of a single nose crinkle, Ginger Rogers doesn't seem to be channeling Myrna Loy at all (and wisely not), but it's interesting that the enormous chemistry between Loy and Powell is such that comparisons seem inevitable (and they were inevitable in 1935 as well though Powell and Loy had yet to do the bulk of their important work together). Rogers' feisty fiancée and Loy's cool, witty spouse are really miles apart. If it's not up to the perfection that is Loy and Powell, I would say that Rogers and Powell work very well together on their own terms (whereas hooking up Myrna Loy with Fred Astaire would likely produce a travesty. But that's neither here nor there).It took me several viewings to get the mystery aspects straight (when in doubt, assume that we're dealing with two hired hoods from the murderer), but it's not the mystery that I watch these films for. They live and die on the witty badinage and romantic chemistry between their leads (and good supporting characters add a lot to any kind of film). William Powell was superb in these movies because his line readings demonstrate an all but infinite variety that never grows stale. Ginger Rogers' way with a wisecrack was almost equally memorable, though she surely seemed more natural with a working class background than in Park Avenue Society, as here. They seem to enjoy working together and make this the best of the many THIN MAN copies that I've seen.A word must be spared for the sets of Clay Dalzell's apartment, an Art Deco wonder, particularly its bathroom. A toilet that plays 'Pop Goes The Weasel' when you sit on it is one for the books and must supply the only 'toilet humor' that Hollywood would give us between 1935 and PSYCHO in 1960! STAR OF MIDNIGHT was a popular film in 1935 and remains a joy to watch today. William Powell and Ginger Rogers may have been half of the best teams in all of Hollywood history, but it's a shame that they couldn't have had another go at it together. With talent like theirs, it could hardly miss.

masercot So, how does Ginger Rogers stand up against Myrna Loy? Rogers has the comedy chops. She's shown that in movies like The Major and the Minor. She trades quips with Powell much like Loy. She snoops like Loy. She drinks like Loy. But, she isn't Myrna Loy...If the Thin Man series had never been, I would've enjoyed Rogers' performance more. It was a fun movie: An incomprehensible mystery where the murderer seems like a name drawn out of a hat at the last minute. The judge from Miracle on 34th Street plays Swain the Butler. The man who played Inspector Henderson in Night at the Opera plays a cop in this movie as well.There is a nice chemistry between Rogers and Powell, but it just doesn't rise to the chemistry between Powell and Loy. Powell's detective character needs the stern eye of a sophisticated woman like Mrs. Charles to keep him humble. Makes for better comedy...All in all, though...a good movie...

Seltzer My first favorite is Clifton Webb's bathroom in "Laura". When I win the lottery, I plan to hand the DVD of "Laura" to the finest interior decorator money can hire and say, "Create Waldo Lydecker's bathroom for me." Now that I've seen "Star of Midnight", I will have to add, "And incorporate William Powell's shower." Besides the fantastic Art Deco sets, Star of Midnight is enjoyable for the excellent comic yet suave performance by William Powell. Perhaps inspired by Powell, Ginger Rogers is less wooden than usual, and I (no Ginger fan) found myself rooting for her in her pursuit of marital bliss. Paul Kelly, Gene Lockhart and J. Farrell MacDonald turn in respectable if not particularly memorable performances. The only two clucks in the bunch are Leslie Fenton as the young man in search of a lost love (even if they scraped off the pancake makeup and the extra eyeliner he still would only have one expression in his repertoire), and a clod-footed "comic" turn by Robert Emmett O'Connor as a dumb police detective. Fortunately, they have very few scenes. I enjoyed "Star of Midnight", especially for William Powell's performance, and will watch it again and again.

imdb-24 This movie is thoroughly enjoyable with just the proper balance of humour, intrigue, and style that only William Powell is capable of . Ginger Rogers gives one of her better acting performances and seems very natural opposite of William Powell. This is as good as any of the Thin Man series.