Even in her lesser films, Sonja Henie was always watchable and there was a good deal to like about her weaker outings. The bright spots were often her, the ice skating sequences and the music, while the weak link was often typically the story.'Thin Ice' is a nice, pleasant film, if not a great one. Its chief let-down is the very threadbare and sometimes ridiculous story, that even feels too thin for the very short length and more an excuse for stringing along the skating sequences, the comedy and the songs.The ice skating sequences (often a highlight in Henie's films) are beautifully choreographed, adeptly danced and lovely to look at, but there have been more imaginative and memorable ones in a Sonja Henie film. Likewise, the songs are pleasant and fit well, but there are no instant classics here.However, 'Thin Ice' looks great, the comedy from Joan Davies still stands up as very funny, it's all competently directed and the dance direction for the "Prince Igor Suite" is pretty exemplary.While stretched ever so slightly in the acting department, Henie is pert and charming with a smile that makes anyone go weak at the knees, and the camera clearly loves her. Her ice skating is also out of this world, and the envy perhaps of even professional ice skaters now. Tyrone Power is a handsome and charismatic partner, their chemistry endearing to watch, while Joan Davies steals scenes in a deliciously riotous performance.On the whole, a nice if not great film. 7/10 Bethany Cox

After the success that Sonia Henie's American film debut, One In a Million, had at the box office, no doubt Darryl F. Zanuck felt better about investing more money in her next film, Thin Ice. The resulting production is obvious for any viewer, the money spigots were left on for Thin Ice.It's hard to imagine today the world wide popularity of Sonia Henie who the year before had come off her third gold medal in the Olympics before turning professional with the 20th Century Fox movie contract. The public wanted to see her skate and Zanuck gave them what they wanted. Her many routines are nicely staged and the ice dancing got an Academy Award nomination for Dance Direction. Yes, back in the age of musicals they actually had that as an Oscar category.Zanuck even gave her his lot's most popular leading man in Tyrone Power. This was the first of two films Power did with Henie and while I think that Second Fiddle was a better film, this one isn't bad for what it is, a vehicle to show off Sonia Henie.Sonia plays a skating instructor at an Alpine resort which is going to host a European conference. Power plays the playboy prince of a small duchy whose romantic escapades get him headlines. Henie gets herself involved with him, but she doesn't know who it is. In the meantime the two of them become tabloid fodder. I think you have a good idea where this plot is leading.Still Thin Ice is not bad as entertainment. And for comic relief we have Joan Davis conducting the all girl orchestra at the hotel and giving us some comic numbers. She's not bad at all. And Zanuck had such scene stealing character actors as Arthur Treacher, Alan Hale, Raymond Walburn, Sig Ruman, Melville Cooper, and Maurice Cass for support.None but the best for his Olympic size investment.

It's funny, but after doing well over 4000 reviews on IMDb, I had yet to see a single Sonja Henie film. Although I am a huge fan of Hollywood's Golden Age, I can't stand the odd notion of integrating skating or swimming (such as in the Esther Williams films) into enormous and ultimately silly song and dance spectaculars. While this Henie film was not done by famed choreographer and director Busby Berkeley, it was filled with gobs of song and skating numbers that frankly bored me and looked a lot like the work of Berkeley.Fortunately, this film was on tape, so I was able to speed through these numbers when they became too tedious. What was left was actually pretty good thanks to some decent writing and a surprisingly nice performance by Henie. She and Tyrone Power did a good job when it came to the story and I really wish Twentieth-Century Fox would have just eliminated or extremely shortened the musical numbers because the romance was very sweet. Apparently folks in the 30s loved these cornball numbers, but they seriously impede the story. If you can look past this, this is a nice little time passer--good enough that I actually might just see another Henie film.

This is a rather ordinary romantic comedy with Henie and Power as the two lovers and the usual misunderstandings. It's not a great film(and a rather short one too), but the result is very pleasing indeed. Power is good as the young prince and Henie is especially notable for her skating skills. In the supporting cast, Joan Davis stands out as the orchestra leader and sings a couple of rather funny and touching songs. Made to entertain, which it mostly does. 6/10