The Third Man [Blu-ray]

Director: Carol Reed Carol Reed

Overview

In this Cold War spy classic, Holly Martins (Joseph Cotten), a third-rate American pulp novelist, arrives in postwar Vienna, where he has been promised a job by his old friend Harry Lime (Orson Welles). Upon his arrival, Martins discovers that Lime has been killed in a traffic accident, and that his funeral is taking place immediately. At the graveside, Martins meets outwardly affable Major Calloway (Trevor Howard) and actress Anna Schmidt (Alida Valli), who is weeping copiously. When Calloway tells Martins that the late Harry Lime was a thief and murderer, the loyal Martins is at first outraged. Gradually, he discovers not only that Calloway was right but also that the man lying in the coffin in the film's early scenes was not Harry Lime at all--and that Lime is still very much alive (he was the mysterious "third man" at the scene of the fatal accident). Thus the stage is set for the movie's famous climactic confrontation in the sewers of Vienna--and the even more famous final shot, in which Martins pays emotionally for doing "the right thing." Written by Graham Greene, The Third Man is an essential classic, made even more so by the insistent zither music of Anton Karas. The film is currently available in both an American and British release version; the American print, with an introduction by Joseph Cotten, is slightly shorter than the British version, which is narrated by director Carol Reed. Nominated for several Academy Awards, The Third Man won Best Cinematography for Robert Krasker.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/14/2010
UPC:	0012236110477
Original Release:	1949
Rating:	NR
Source:	LIONS GATE
Presentation:	[B&W]
Language:	English
Time:	1:45:00

Special Features

Audio Commentary with Assistant Director Guy Hamilton, Simon Callow, and 2nd Unit Script Supervisor Angela Allen; ; The Third Man Interactive Vienna Tour; The Third Man on the Radio; Guardian National Film Theatre; Audio Interviews with Joseph Cotten and Graham Greene; Joseph Cotten's Alternate Opening Voiceover Narration; ; Interview and Zither Performance by Cornelia Mayer; Stills Gallery; Original Trailers

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Joseph Cotten	Holly Martins
Alida Valli	Anna Schmidt
Orson Welles	Harry Lime
Trevor Howard	Maj. Calloway
Ernst Deutsch	Baron Kurtz
Erich Ponto	Dr. Winkle
Siegfried Breuer	Popescu
Bernard Lee	Sgt. Paine
Herbert Halbik	Hansel
Alexis Chesnakov	Brodsky
Wilfrid Hyde-White	Crabbin
Geoffrey Keen	British Policeman
Paul Hardtmuth	Hall Porter
Hedwig Bleibtreu	Anna's `Old Woman'
Nelly Arno	Kurtz's Mother
Annie Rosar	Porter's Wife
Jenny Werner	Winkel's Maid
Leo Bieber	Barman at Casanova
Frederick Schreicher	Hansel's Father
Paul Smith	MP
Martin Boddey	Man
Eric Pohlmann	Waiter at Smolka's
Geoffrey Wade	Actor
Thomas Gallagher	Taxi Driver
Walter Hertner	Barman at Sacher's
Martin Miller	Headwaiter
Rona Grahame	Actor
Holga Walrow	Josefstadt Theatre Actress
Harry Belcher	Man Chasing Holly
Michael Connor	Actor
Lilly Khan	Nurse
Paul Hörbiger	Porter
Jack Arrow	International Patrol A
Harold Ayer	Soldier
Paul Birch	Military Policeman
Madge Brindley	Guest at Casanova Bar
Robert Brown	British Military Policeman in Sewer Chase
Ray Browne	International Patrol B
Paul Carpenter	International Patrol D
Marie-Louise Charlier	Stripper at club
Guy De Monceau	International Patrol C
Robin Burns	Actor
Herbeil Halbik	Hansel
Anton Karas	Composer

Technical Credits

Alexander Korda

Graham Greene

Carol Reed	Director,Producer
Alexander Korda	Producer,Screenwriter
David O. Selznick	Producer
W. Percy Day	Special Effects
John Cox	Sound Effects
Jack Drake	Sound Effects
Red Law	Sound Effects
Bert Ross	Sound Effects
Jack Davies	Sound Effects
Hugh Perceval	Producer
Graham Greene	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

Carol Reed's The Third Man is one of the odder successes among international films of the late 1940s: at a time when movies were supposedly getting dulled-down, in keeping with audience sensibilities, here was a quirky movie from England, with Hitchcock-like touches and an odd sense of humor, that manages to be grim, topical, and wryly witty, while retaining, even augmenting, a good bit of author Graham Greene's sensibility. For all the film's virtues, its making was a tale of compromises turned into inspiration. Producer Alexander Korda wanted Noël Coward to play the mysterious Harry Lime, but, once Orson Welles was cast in the part, the movie became a testament to his presence and impact; he's only on screen for about a quarter of the movie, but he's the actor that everyone remembers. In fact, Welles was off shooting another movie, reporting to The Third Man only late in the shooting, and he was doubled for many scenes: that was Carol Reed's assistant, future Goldfinger director Guy Hamilton, in the black trench coat running down Vienna's darkened streets, and those were director Reed's fingers reaching through the sewer grating at the chase's end. Recasting Joseph Cotten's Holly Martins as an American in turn allowed Greene to bring to the screen for the first time his antipathy toward Americans and their bright-eyed, bushy-tailed innocence in approaching the world's problems, a theme that would manifest itself even more directly in relation to Vietnam in The Quiet American.

All Movie Guide - Bruce Eder