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Directed by: Carol Reed Starring: Joseph Cotton, Alidi Valli, Orson Welles, Trevor Howard, Vienna circa 1948 "I never really knew the old Vienna, before the war, with its Strauss music, its glamour and easy charm. Constantinople suited me better. I really got to know it during the classic period of the black market..." Thus begins one of the finest Film-Noirs in history, though this one takes place half a world away from Noir's usual LA stomping grounds. The Third Man started as writer Graham Greene's impressions on the occupied city of Vienna, as reported to producer Alexander Korda. David O. Selznick was brought in to finance and locate American stars, and British film great Carol Reed was attached to direct. The story opens with Holly Martins (Cotton) arriving in Vienna. An American writer down on his luck, Holly has been brought to Vienna by a job offer from his old school friend, Harry Lime. (Welles) Unfortunately, he shows up just in time for Lime's funeral. Cast adrift in a strange land, Holly occupies himself by investigating his friend's suspicious traffic accident. In the course of his digging, he finds a girlfriend of Harry's, Anna Schmidt, (Valli) who remembers Lime as the same mischievous free spirit of Holly's youth. But Holly also runs afoul of Calloway, (Howard) a British military policeman who hints darkly at Lime's real business in Vienna. Further probing drags Holly into Vienna's sinister underworld, populated by racketeers and brimming with questionable schemes. As he discovers more about his friend's dark past, Holly begins to question everything he knows about Harry Lime, as well as exactly how he can make things right. A truly classic gem of a film, The Third Man is dangerously close to being a forgotten relic. A spiritual ancestor to the great thrillers of modern times, the movie is a perfect combination of writing, acting, setting, and directing. Greene's script maintains a perfect tension between the taught suspense of a classic whodunit and the dissipated angst of an expatriate's story. Cotton makes a great guide through the urban jungle of Vienna, portraying Martins as everything a typical American abroad should be - naive but intelligent, idealistic but compassionate, sentimental but inquisitive. Alida Valli plays the role of Bergman-esque siren to the hilt, and Howard performs memorably as a smart but no-nonsense cop, something of an English Joe Friday. And of course there's Orson Welles. Only in Citizen Kane was Welles ever better cast. He brings Lime to life as a figure of mystery, a playful yet sinister force that dominates the film with comparatively minor screen time. Perhaps the movie's biggest star is the city of Vienna, though. At the time of filming, Vienna was still a divided city, governed by all four of the Allied powers. This unique bureaucracy is a subtle but vital component of the film, making both the city's thriving black market and the progression of the film's plot possible. Filmed on location in 1948, The Third Man takes us into the rubble-strewn remains of a great city just starting to rebuild. Carol Reed is obviously in love with this setting, and he pampers it just as another director would coddle a starlet. Impeccably chosen shots are lit with meticulous care, capturing a city made up of shadows and broken buildings. Slicked with rain, the cobbles and stones of Vienna shimmer as mysteriously as any noir pavement. Even when he focuses on the interactions of the characters rather than the sinister beauty of the setting, Reed maintains the stylistic skill of a master director. Framing and angles serve to enhance the feeling of nearly every dialogue. The Third Man sets the standard for the use of the Dutch Angle - it's said that when production was finished the crew presented Reed with a level in joking reference to his taste for off-plumb shots. The icing on the cake is the scoring. No one had any idea what to do for music until Reed arrived in Vienna. At a cast party before filming commenced, the director fell in love with the unusual music being made by a zither player in the corner. Inspired, Reed had the player - Anton Karas - tracked down and commissioned him to produce the entire score. Thankfully Reed was adamant in this edgy choice, and so The Third Man escaped being burdened with a conventional Max Steiner-style soundtrack. Karas's zither score is so uniquely memorable that it prompted a shocking surge in the instrument's popularity, an unanticipated hit recording of the movie's theme, and a sold out world tour for the performer. The Third Man Theme remains an enduring piece of film arcana, and even if you've never heard of the movie you may recognize the music. All in all, The Third Man is one of the great underdogs of the classic film era. Unless you absolutely cannot tolerate watching an oldie, you'll be pleasantly surprised by this arty, clever thriller. If I had only a single 5.5 rating to hand out, I wouldn't even hesitate to give it to The Third Man. RATING: 5.5 PROS: Great writing, great acting, amazing cinematography and unique setting CONS: Pacing can seem slow ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
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May 5, 2004 05:50
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| # ? Apr 25, 2024 13:37 |
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Highly recommended, it's probably my favorite film noir. Very stylish and great camerawork. I thought the pacing was just right, necessary to build up suspense. I also agree the soundtrack is amazing. 5
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May 5, 2004 06:21
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While not the best movie I've ever seen, it certainly has one of my all time favorite scenes: the last long shot of the road along the orchard gets me weepy everytime I watch it. That alone excuses any other flaws it might have. A must see film. 5/5
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May 5, 2004 09:56
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This film is a really interesting mix of documentary style filmmkaing and film noir, combining the most popular genres from Britain and America, much like the cast and crew of the production itself. Lime is one of the best characters ever. Welles really knows how to work the audience in the role too, especially in the scene where he is first introduced, where he bears that unreadable expression, capturing the mystery behind the character. The Third Man is such a great film that it even shows up on the list of the one hundred greatest American movies, depsite being a British film  There's a great spoof/tribute in Peter Jackson's Heavenly Creatures, which is worth checking out for fans of this.
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May 5, 2004 15:04
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Excellent film, tremendous score. Harry Lime is such a slimy bastard. Five.
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May 5, 2004 15:06
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One of my absolute favorite lines in all of film is when Harry Lime tells Holly Martin the difference between Italy under the Borgias and Switzerland.
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May 5, 2004 15:39
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This movie is amazing. I recommend at least renting the Criterion Edition because the print is really cleaned up and ther are some awesome special features. 5 just 5.
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May 5, 2004 19:29
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Excellent movie indeed, pity my DVD went missing. Voted 5.
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May 5, 2004 20:55
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In Italy, for thirty years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love. They had five hundred years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock. So long. Holly. Fantastic film, anyone who hasn't seen it is in for a treat.
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May 5, 2004 21:26
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God I love this movie. Everything about it is good. The acting, the cinematography, the story, the dialogue; it's all brilliant. This is my second favorite movie behind Seven Samurai. Everyone jizzes over Citizen Kane, but I'm telling you right now, The Third Man contains Orson Welles' greatest performance. He's mesmerizing. You cannot take your eyes off of him. This movie also contains the greatest "reveal" ever committed to film. Just watch, you'll see it. EDIT: Also, this was named the best British film of all time by the British Film Institute. mangler103 fucked around with this message at 00:47 on May 6, 2004 |
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May 6, 2004 00:44
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I really liked the way this movie plays out and the style with which it flows. I don't know much about film noir, but this was very interesting to me.
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May 15, 2004 21:18
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The first post pretty much said it all, so I'll just add that this film has my favorite last shot ever.
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Jul 8, 2004 08:12
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What's up with bolding or capitalizing the movie's title throughout a review? Anyway, I saw this for the first time a few months back, and liked it. The more I thought about it afterwards, the more I enjoyed it, and I'm already looking forward to seeing it again. The theme and story is good, actors/roles great, and the scenes and lines awesome. Very interesting movie indeed, 5.
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Jul 10, 2004 02:00
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Probably my favorite movie. The music, the cinematography, the acting, everything was superb. The casting for this movie stands out in my mind as just fantastic. Orson Welles plays the possibly titular character very well, making the viewer completely reevaluate just who Harry Lime is when he finally shows up (check out my avatar lolz). All the praise I could possibly lather on this movie has been said, so I'll just say 5.5/5 Salt Block Party fucked around with this message at 11:15 on Apr 19, 2005 |
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Mar 24, 2005 23:19
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My favorite movie. Everything just works right. Did anybody notice that Holly walks under a ladder (a supersticious sign of bad luck to come) just before finding out that Harry's been killed? The political subtext is very well done and realistic, the cinematography is beyond what I would expect out of a 50 year old film, and the score is among the most brilliant on film. If only one film ever gets a 5.5 out of me, this is it.
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Mar 25, 2005 16:03
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| # ? Apr 25, 2024 13:37 |
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This is my favorite film of all time as well. As stated above, everything works perfectly. The dialouge, the dark humor, and above all the acting. Cotten is great as Martins. His scene as he attempts to talk about the state of American Literature because he's mistaken as a "great author" was funny and tense, and shot in a terrific way. The cuk-coo clock monologue is great as well, and the Zither music is really just mesmerizing. The Criterion disc is great, I can't recommend it enough. 5.5 out of 5.5
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Apr 2, 2005 17:37
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