Rating: 
Summary: yum
Review: This is one of my all-time favorite films. I can't add much to the other reviews on the page, other than "see it at least once".It's somewhat surreal at times (mostly because of the omnipresent zither music) but that just adds to the overall atmosphere of the movie. There's very little that is distracting about the plot, the actors or the characters--it hangs together very cleanly. Orson Welles is great, and it's truly a shame he didn't appear in more movies... he does an absolutely awesome job in this movie. This movie back-to-back with Citizen Kane is one of the best nights of movie watching I can think of.
Rating:
Summary: I have no words
Review: It's hard to say how good this movie is, other than to say it is without flaw.
Rating:
Summary: A True Masterpiece
Review: There are many films considered "great." Most of these are "great" in one way or another; a few in many ways (Orson Wells "Citizen Kane" comes to mind), but few are great in EVERY way. Carol Reed's "The Third Man" is one of these. The story: A true mystery. Not just is the typical sense of a 'who done it?', but in a deeper psychological sense of WHY? Are the Military Police hounding an innocent man? If so, why? Was the crime actually commited? If so, why? The film not only askes these questions, but it makes the audience yearn to know the answers. The script: From it first voice over introduction to it's voiceless end sequence The Third Man demonstrates brilliant screen writing. The dialog is real, but it is more. For one thing it is funny. Not just 'fuuny' in the sense of comic lines, but in subtle ways; in the playful use of words and in the interesting juxtaposition of those words with their accompanying images. (This aspect alone makes The Third Man a film to see again and again.) Without revealing the story line, let it simply be said that Orson Well's impromptu lines about the "cookoo clock" will echo in your brain for hours, weeks, maybe even years, after having heard them. The cinematography: Reed was criticized for his use of unusual camera angles. Word is that he was so stung by that criticism that he never used them again. Those critics must be in purgatory for that sin! Those camera angles, working along with dynamicly constucted patterns of light and shadow, are no mear gimmick. They communicate the charactor's state of mind thud allowing a wonderful econmomy of dialog. Brilliant! Symbolism: The Third Man can be thoroughly enjoyed as a simple mystery film. But look a little deeper into the images and it becomes much more. Again, without revealing anything about the plot: study the sequence on the Ferris Wheel. Compare what is being revealed by the dialog (some of which may at first appear to be mere banter) with the motion of the car. Notice how a small spoken revelation at the ride's apex changes the charactor's life from heaven to a decent into hell. That timing was no accident; it is Master filmaking. Does Reeds 'film theology' allow for escape from hell? The fingers through the grate will tell you. The Music: How can one 'simple' piece on a zither carry ALL the moods of so emotionally complex a story? It does. It is so perfect that a visual of the instrument being played is even used to meaningfully introduce the film. And, if that wouldn't be enough, the melody is so hypnotic that "The Third Man Theme" went on to be a top-ten radio hit. Last, but certainly not least, The Acting: Masterful beyond words. Orson Wells' walk as he approaches the Ferris Wheel tells us more about the man then 20 minutes of typical expositional dialog. Joseph Cotton is equally wonderful to watch. Even a child and a parrot perform their parts perfectly! Enough said. Buy this film, set aside an undisturbed evening to see it, then come back and write your own rave review.
Rating:
Summary: The Third Man -- Perfect Film Noir
Review: Welles doesn't enter until past the midpoint, and he enters by way of a kitten licking his shoes. Other than that, he's a shadow in a doorway, the way he's a shadow in life. Dark, bleak, slow, and nasty -- but never gratuitous. At least one reviewer distinguishes between "film" and "movie," and this has to be considered a film. But, oddly enough, while some "great films" also seem inaccessible, this one is not. It's only days (or maybe weeks, or maybe years) later that you recognize, "this was a great film, one of the few to call great." While watching it, it's just entertainment. The Criterion Edition, so near as I could tell, was flawless. No "improving" to make it "better than the original" -- just good crisp black and white with details in the shadows and no distractions from streaks or scratches. Audio of its time, but clear, crisp, not muddled. The bonus of a radio broadcast or two of the Welles "Third Man" series (with a nowhere near so cynical hero) showing an old Zenith radio as the image on the screen, didn't hurt the nostalgia quotient. This was a movie that could only have been made when it was made. It uses post WW-II Vienna as a backdrop, a Vienna of extravagant architectural excess crushed into ruin by bombings of the war. The rubble is as much the story as the cynicism or the innocence. A child whose father (or grandfather) was murdered points an accusing finger at Cotton (the nominal 'hero' if the movie could have such a thing) in accusation of murder. But the smiling face on that child reflects neither the horror of the murder, nor the rubble in the streets. Some things you say -- some things stay silent, a part of life. And maybe that sums up the film.
Rating:
Summary: Intrigue Amid the Elegant Ruins of Post-World War II Vienna
Review: Pulp western writer Holly Martins (Cotten) arrives in Vienna just after World War II's end to work for old school chum Harry Lime (Welles), only to learn that Lime was tragically killed in an accident. Details of Lime's death are inconsistent and Martins begins to suspect that maybe his good friend's death was no accident after all. He naively plunges into the morally ambiguous world of Vienna--the dangerous antithesis of his ingenuous pulp western formula (hero saves friend framed by corrupt lawmen, hero gets girl in the end) view of the world ("You were born to be murdered," Major Calloway (Trevor Howard) tells Martins)--seeking the truth. Bernard Lee is the amiable, unsophisticated Sergeant Paine--the only one in Vienna who recognizes Martins and appreciates his work ("You can put 'em down and pick 'em up anytime!). Welles is the charismatic but amoral Harry Lime, who, although only in few scenes, pervades and dominates the story. Cotten, Welles, Valli (as the melancholy Anna) and Howard standout, as does the entire supporting cast. Contains many now-famous scenes, including Lime's "entrance" and graveside ending with Cotton and Valli as the leaves fall around them and the zither music concludes--the perfect answer to the "Hollywood ending" that has wrecked many films that otherwise may have been great.
Rating: 
Summary: There's something about you guys that I don't understand
Review: I just don't like this movie, and I can't understand why everyone says it's a classic. It's totally uncinematic. The whole story is told through dialogue. The cinematography is fancy all right, but its fanciness is hardly necessary. The movie doesn't even really need an audience, because it finds its own story much more interesting than I ever thought it was. Joseph Cotten comes to Vienna immediately finding his friend dead, hit by a car. Before you can blink, he's obsessed with finding out the details of the incident and turns into a regular Philip Marlowe. The movie treats Harry Lime's death as if it's as important as the death of president Kennedy, AND WE MUST FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MAN QUICKLY BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE! COULD IT HAVE BEEN...GASP! MURDER! Who cares?
Rating:
Summary: Sir Carol Reed
Review: Three names are generally associated with the making of 'The Third Man'- Graham Greene, Orson Welles, and Carol Reed. Some people actually believe Welles was the director. Carol Reed is the true hero. He made three or four outstanding films - 'Odd Man Out,' 'The Fallen Idol,' and 'An Outcast of the Islands.' 'The Third Man' is easily the most popular. And it remains the film that seemed to capture the mood of post-war Europe - in ruins, bankrupt, partitioned by the superpowers. Vienna, like Berlin, was carved up by the conquerors like a pie - just prior to the fall of the Iron Curtain across half the continent. All of this is ancient history, and yet 'The Third Man' remains wonderfully evocative. How could anyone forget the magnificent zither music of Anton Karas?
Rating:
Summary: Each Viewing Is More Rewarding Than The Last...
Review: Sure, it's a great thriller, and Welles' entrance ranks among the best in post-war cinema; but what draws me to this film again and again is the meditation on friendship at it core. Harry Lime is at once a rogue and a confidant, attractive and repellent. The ferris wheel scene is flat-out briliant. If it seems to lag on first viewing, give it a chance; like a great album, this film gets better with each visit.
Rating: 
Summary: classic
Review: a miracle of cinematogaphy and the craft of filmmaking
Rating:
Summary: A must have DVD for film noir fans!
Review: I have always seen inferior prints of this film until I found this Criterion DVD and I must say, it was like watching a completely different film. The crisp b&w photography has been restored to the original pristine quality and one can easily see why this film took home the Oscar for best cinematography. The sound is also superb. The DVD is loaded with extra features such as the original opening monologue to the British release (voiced by director Carol Reed), a reading of the novel by author Graham Greene, archival footage of the sewer system "police" in Vienna (which plays a significant part in the film), and numerous stills with tantalizing behind the scenes information (like the fact that Orson Welles was so put off by working in the actual sewers that he refused to return and the crew had to build a sewer set at Shepperton Studios). There are many other extras as well, actually too many to remember. Bravo to Criterion for their amazing work on this classic film!
| 
