Product Details

• Actors: Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles
• Directors: Carol Reed
• Producers: David O. Selznick
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Studio: Criterion
• Run Time: 104 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000P6QY7W
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #74,307 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Format: DVD Jan 1999 Not Rated Movie Description This classic noir mystery, from the team of Carol Reed and Graham Greene, is generally considered to be the best filmwork of both of these estimable talents. THE THIRD MAN features Joseph Cotten as Holly Martins, a pulp novelist who has come to post-WWII Vienna with the promise of work from his friend, Harry Lime (Orson Welles). Credits Cast: Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles Director: Carol Reed Producer: Alexander Korda, Carol Reed, David O. Selznick Synopsis Carol Reed reached the peak of his form with this classic noir, an elegy for American innocence and European elegance. Joseph Cotten, in fine form, stars as unemployed pulp-novelist Holly Martins. When he arrives in post-WWII Vienna on the promise of a job from his old friend Harry Lime (Orson Welles), he finds that Lime has recently died in a dubious car accident. Against the advice of British sector authority Major Calloway (Trevor Howard), who accuses Lime of criminal behavior, the indignant Martins decides to stay to investigate his friend's death. He searches this city of rubble-strewn streets and bombed-out buildings, earnestly questioning Lime's associates, a cynical, war-weary collection of black-market hustlers. At length, he realizes that the stories he's hearing are so full of contradiction, he's getting nowhere. Yet, he's entranced by Lime's beautiful girlfriend, Anna Schmidt (Alida Valli), who, unlike the others, seems to have loved Harry. Calloway finally provides evidence of Harry's treachery, and Martins, despondent, is about to return home when everything changes in a shadowed moment. THE THIRD MAN is a masterpiece of melancholia featuring extraordinary writing, acting, and directing, as well as a classic zither score by Anton Karas. Film Notes DVD Features: Region 1 Encoding Original and Re-release Theatrical Trailers Production History Audio Interview B&W Extra Info: Criterion Collection UPC: 037429141625

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fewer bells and whistles but still just fine, May 5, 2007

By	Sam Duncan (Hillsville, VA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I'm fairly certain that the reviewer who gave this older edition one star has not actually seen it. If he had he'd know that the picture and sound are just fine, and from what I can tell about 60% of the features on the two disc edition are on this one too. You'll have to decide for yourself if the bells and whistles are worth the extra money, but if you want to save yourself a few bucks then you're not missing too much with the older version.
Honestly, Criterion would have done us all more of a service if they'd finally gotten "Our Man in Havana" out on DVD instead of putting out a deluxe edition of "The Third Man." But I do have to give them a lot of credit for releasing "The Fallen Idol" on DVD.

5.0 out of 5 stars Still One of The Greatest, June 4, 2009

By	John F. Rooney - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Viewing "The Third Man" again brings back pleasant memories not only because it is a masterful movie, but because it helps to relive my personal experience in the Austrian capital. In 1954 I was stationed in Vienna with the U.S. military police company that included the International Patrol featured in the movie. Seeing the streets I knew so well was a treat. I saw the movie in 1949 and like many others was captivated by the Anton Karas's zither title theme and music from the movie.
What makes this a classic motion picture?--the superb acting (particularly Joseph Cotton, Orson Welles, Trevor Howard, and Alida Valli), the flashes of humor (witness the Wilfred Hyde-White scenes), the gripping black and white photography, the suspense, the chase sequences (especially the one with the little boy chasing and accusing the couple through the dark streets), the use of ominous shadows, the build-up of the mystery of the third person at the death scene, the use of Vienna as a major player, and the innovative zither sound track.
Also: the great direction by Carol Reed surpassing Hitchcock's similar work, the love interest, the enormity of Harry Lime's crime in human terms, the little insights into characters (Baron Kurtz and Dr. Winkel were probably lovers), the police procedural component (the British military police), and Graham Greene's great script based upon his novel. Like other golden movies, it is able to draw you into its being so you get completely enveloped in it like a Venus fly trap. Great movies transport you into their world.
Some footnotes: The movie has some eccentric characters as side effects. Reed focuses on little details that catch the viewer's attention like Lime's cat. The sleazy Casanova Club is part of the Viennese backdrop. Lime is a boy who "never grew up." Popescu says, "Everybody ought to be careful in a city like this." Lime hides in the shadows, and Cotton is unaware of it as he says, "Come out, come out, whoever you are." The giant ferris wheel in the Prader was a sight I had to see and ride for myself after having seen it in the movie. The chase in the sewers stays with you long after you have seen the movie.
It's a movie I never tire of.

11 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Get the newer version instead, April 11, 2007

By	The Prestige (CA, USA) - See all my reviews

THE THIRD MAN is a classic tale of suspense and betrayal with a terrific performance from Orson Welles and one of the most unusual film scores ever. However, I almost ordered this DVD by mistake not realizing that it is in fact the older version. Criterion is releasing a brand new version of this title in May which features better picture quality and an entire second DVD full of extra features that are not available on this version. That is definitely the version to get and I am really looking forward to it.