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The Third Man (1949)


The Third Man (1949)



8/10


Starring
Joseph Cotten
Alida Valli
Orson Welles
Trevor Howard


Directed by Carol Reed


The musical theme of this movie is something that’s well known, and the overall musical score can best be summarized in one word: classic. The movie itself pulls at the strings of your heart and senses from different angles.

In summary, the movie is about the death of Harry Lime (Orson Welles), which is weird because the accounts of his death don’t match. One witness saw three men carry Harry’s body, but according to the police report based on two witnesses, there were only two men there.

The person who discovers this inconsistency is Harry’s friend from America, Holly Martins (Joseph Cotten). Holly is visiting Vienna—the place where the movie is set—for a job promised to him by Harry. Upon arriving in Vienna, he hears of Harry’s death and attends the funeral. When Holly starts to investigate what happened to his friend, his path crosses with the officer in charge of the case, Major Calloway (Trevor Howard).

Holly wants to get to the bottom of the case and see what the police are missing or hiding because the Harry he knew growing up isn’t the same Harry the police are glad is dead. At this point, you wish you had a friend like Holly on your side. But that changes quickly as the movie develops, and later on, you wish you never had a friend like him. His way of trying to solve the case leads to many other people getting into trouble, while he gets off unscathed—though out of breath from running for his life. Then there’s Anna, Harry’s love interest. Her place in the movie is everywhere, and this thriller plays with these three characters in ways that make you wonder how the movie plans to wrap everything up.


You keep watching to find out what really happened to Harry. Who are these men who carried him to the sidewalk when he died? Did he die immediately, or did he live long enough to leave a message for Holly and Anna? Was Harry as bad as the police say, or was there a cover-up? Watch this wonderful movie to get the answers to these questions.

The movie has some very unusual camera angles. The cinematographer shot some scenes at angles that make you wonder if it was an error, but then it happens so often that you start to like it.

Seen as one of the best movies ever—which I agree with—the acting in this movie will leave you gasping for more and wishing the movie had more to offer. But it ends with your mind left to wonder how Holly and Anna will deal with the aftermath of Harry.


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