The Third Man

A moody, film noir masterpiece and a time capsule of divided post-war Vienna and its underworld. Perhaps my favorite ‘40s film not directed by Hitchcock.

One of the best films ever made!

I only discovered this film about a year ago on cable and bought it on here when it dropped to $10 and not long after it dropped another 2 bucks and for some bizarre reason has been on sale ever since. This is my favorite Orson Wells picture and Joseph Cotten is very good in it too. You could argue for a more alluring top female lead but she holds her own well enough and the rest of the supporting cast is top notch. The little diddy theme tune that repeats over and over is almost annoying except that it is not since I like it so much; in fact so did everyone else back then that I think it made Vienna famous. You almost wish the ending was better except that the dramatic performance is such that it is likely better the way it was written and all is well. Yes, one of the best of back then....imo. I pick it over Citizen Kane any day!

I don't pretend to be a film student or expert in cinematography. I just know that I love this movie. I first learned about "The Third Man" listening to the old radio show episodes with Orson Welles playing Harry Lime. I was captivated by the lilting zither music and great dialog. I made it a point to find and watch the movie the radio series was based upon. To my delight, the movie was even better. In my humble opinion, this movie is flawless. I like it even better than Citizen Kane, Touch of Evil and The Magnificent Ambersons.

One of the best films of its type. (Noir). The 2 star reviews are dumbfounding. The people that don’t like the music in The Third Man are like those that don’t like Bob Dylan’s music for Pat Garrett and Billy The Kid……totally crazy.

I didn't see this film until I was 55 years old, and that is a true regret. It has edge-of-your seat excitement, coupled with a few moments of good humor and a quirkiness that hangs over the entire film due in no small part, IMHO, to the film's score. From the opening sequence, that somewhat eerie, somewhat cheerful, somewhat threatening, and somewhat comforting music haunts you and stays with you long after the credits have rolled. This is one of those few films I curl up with while holding a bowl of buttered popcorn a couple of nights a year, in order to make up for lost time. I can't recommend it highly enough to anyone who loves great art as film. Or is that film as great art?

This was a great movie, well done, with interesting plot twists, well-done characters, etc. However, I have to agree with others. They scrimped on the music and hired a zither player, whose score had nothing to do with the movie. I have now changed my mind about buying zither music. Ever.

One of my favorite films. Shot in Vienna a couple of years after WWII is does a great job of portraying the atmosphere of the city right after the war. The black and white photography, especially the use of shadows, is stunning. One of Joseph Cotton’s best acting jobs and ably supported by Orson Welles and Trevor Howard. The plot revolves around the black market in Vienna and shows the underside of the city while it was trying to rebuild. It was shot mainly on location and tours are offered that visit many of the locations including the sewers of Vienna where the climatic scenes were shot.

Amazing movie!!! And I personally wanted to think ITunes for allowing us to "cloud" our recent movie purchases. My computer crashed, and all my files were lost. I told myself I'm never going to buy another movie from ITunes, but with this new "Purchase" on iCloud I'm definitely buying all my movies here. Thanks!

Well, not what I was expecting, certainly not off of the Rotten Tomatoes reviews. The movie labors under monochrome acting, and the zither thing is just plain annoying. I enjoyed the frequent German dialogue, but only because I speak it. "Dial M For Murder" is a far superior murder thriller.