An American pulp writer arrives in postwar Vienna only to discover his friend and host has disappeared, and finds himself mixed up in the city's underworld dealings.
The Third Man's original screenplay was written by Graham Greene, one of the 20th Century's most acclaimed novelists, who had worked for British Intelligence during his literary career, drawing on his experiences for his works. Legendary producers from both sides of the Atlantic collaborated on the project: Hollywood's David O. Selznick (Gone With The Wind), and Alexander Korda (The Thief of Bagdad), a Hungarian immigrant who became the first British filmmaker to receive a knighthood.
Director Carol Reed was coming off two successful thrillers, Odd Man Out and The Fallen Idol, the latter also from a Greene script. Shooting was done on location in Vienna, which as in the film had been separated into four sectors after the war, controlled respectively by the UK, USA, USSR, and France. Additional shooting was done at studios in London.
The cast is headed by Joseph Cotten (Shadow of a Doubt, Citizen Kane) and his frequent collaborator, actor/director Orson Welles, and also features British actor Trevor Howard (Mutiny On The Bounty), Italian actress Alida Valli (Suspiria, Eyes Without A Face), and Bernard Lee ("M" from the classic James Bond films).
Reed and cinematographer Robert Krasker fashioned a nightmarish, often surreal depiction of contemporary Vienna, with a frequent use of "canted" (or tilted) angles which became a staple of film noir. The use of shadows, particularly in the climatic sequence in the sewer system drew from German Expressionism. Despite this stylization, the film is also an authentic view of the city, its inhabitants, and its strange diplomatic status.
The unusual musical score was composed and performed entirely on the zither by Anton Karas, a local musician discovered during filming by Reed. Strangely enough, the movie's main theme reached the top of the Billboard charts (where it remained for months) and turned Karas into an international phenomenon.
The film was a big success with critics and audiences in the U.S. and Europe (becoming the highest grossing film of 1949 in England), with Selznick making certain changes he believed appropriate for its American release. It won top honors at the Cannes Film Festival, Best Film from the British Academy, and the Oscar for black & white cinematography. A radio show featuring Orson Welles based on his "Harry Lime" character aired for over fifty episodes in two years.
The Third Man's legacy includes being voted the Best British Film of the 20th Century by a British Film Institute poll, and despite not being made in Hollywood, it curiously also appeared on the American Film Institute's list of Top 100 American films.
Running time is approx. 100 minutes.
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