The Third Man 1950, Rated NR

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Starring Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles, et al.

The aftermath of World War II was, like the war itself, quite devastating. Most of Western Europe had to literally dig itself out of the rubble caused by the Allied and Nazi bombing runs during the war. Cities and countries were newly dividedóGermany was halved into East and West Germany and the Austrian city of Vienna was separated into four distinct quarters: an American quarter, a French quarter, a Russian quarter and a British quarter. For the most part, though, the mood in Western Europe was optimistic; freedom and democracy once again prevailed, and every improvement people made to fix the crumbling foundations of their cities was yet another step away from the horrors of the war. However, even with this cautious optimism, provisions were often in short supply, necessitating the rise and prominence of the black market. In this ravaged and rebuilding Europe, writer Graham Greene and director Carol Reed set and shot their masterful 1950 film, The Third Man.

Out of work and down on his luck in America, western, pulp-fiction writer Holly Martins (Joseph Cotten) is wired a message from an age old friend Harry Lime (Orson Welles). Lime has asked Martins to come to Vienna, where Lime has a well paying position he wants Martins to fill for him. Upon arriving in Vienna, Martins is quite surprised to learn that his friend is dead, and that prior to his death, Lime ran a lucrative racketeering ring selling and distributing weakened strains of penicillin to the populace. Unwilling to believe that Limeís death was an accident or that Lime was involved in the life of crime the British police insist that he was, Martins begins to prowl the street and nightclubs of Vienna looking for some answers.

Rereleased in 1999 to mark the films 50th anniversary, the original prints of The Third Man underwent a comprehensive digital restoration process to bring both the image and sound back to its original, crisp glory.

Shot in black/white with an almost gothic tone of lighting, The Third Man greatly benefitted from this nearly two year long process of restoration. Heavily influenced by the lighting schemes and cinematography on Wellesí 1941 movie Citizen Kane, director Reed took Greeneís tight, twisting script and presented the material in an equally dramatic fashion.

With much of principal photography taking place at night, the lighting and shadows that Reed and cinematographer, Robert Krasker mastermindedósome out of necessity, some for artistic purposesóbecome so integral to the telling of this story that they begin to take on a characterization themselves.

Beautiful and compelling, with Anton Karasí off-the-wall zither score pacing the on-screen action, The Third Man is as fine a film noir as you are able to see. A genuine masterpiece, The Third Man has more than stood the test of time.