The Third Man (1949)

The Third Man, directed by Carol Reed and released in 1949, is generally recognised as not just one of the greats of film noir but as one of the greatest movies of all time. I’ve seen it a couple of times and it would make my top ten list. Now I’m about to revisit it. Will I be as impressed this time as I was last time? We will see.

Despite the international cast The Third Man was a British production. The location shooting (of which there’s a great deal by the standards of 1949) was done in Vienna. Although there was not only a second unit but a third as well Reed in fact directed almost everything himself.

Holly Martins (Joseph Cotten), a popular American writer of westerns, arrives in Vienna shortly after the end of the Second World War. The city is occupied by the armies of the British, the Americans, the French and the Russians. Holly is broke but his old friend Harry Lime has tempted him to Vienna with the promise of work. Unfortunately by the time Holly arrives Harry Lime is dead, run over by a truck.

There were several witnesses to the accident but they all tell slightly different stories. Harry was killed instantly. He lived for just a short time. He lived long enough to pass on an important message. Holly has a bit of an over-active imagination and this combined with the odd discrepancies in accounts of the incident arouses his suspicion. British military policeman Major Calloway (Trevor Howard) advises him to leave Vienna but Holly is now determined to find out what really happened. Two men carried Harry’s body to the side of the road after the accident, but some accounts mention a mysterious third man. Holly is particularly keen to find this third man.

Holly tracks down Harry’s girlfriend Anna Schmidt (Alida Valli), Harry’s doctor and several of the witnesses, none of whom are very coöperative. He begins to suspect that Harry was actually murdered. Holly is right about the accident not being what it seemed to be but his theory as to what happened is quite wrong. Holly will find out the truth, but do we always want to know the truth? Does it actually help us?

When Greene was hired to write the screenplay he first wrote the story out as a novella which was later published (and the novella differs from the movie in several key points). This was one of the three collaborations between Greene and Carol Reed (the others being The Fallen Idol and Our Man in Havana) and those three movies are close to being Reed’s best work. Greene was quite lucky when it came to move adaptations of his stories. Apart from the lamentable 1958 version of The Quiet American most have been pretty good and several have been superb (not just the three films with Reed but also Brighton Rock and This Gun For Hire). Greene was a naturally cinematic writer, possibly the first great novelist to have a natural affinity for movies.

The Third Man has three huge claims to cinematic greatness. Firstly there’s the story. The screenplay was written by Graham Greene from one of his own stories. With Greene as the writer you know you’re going to get a tale that is literate and intelligent with a dash of black humour, deliciously twisted, and highly entertaining. There are plenty of typical Graham Greene obsessions in this tale. Betrayal of course. Not just betrayal of love, but betrayal of illusions. The idea that knowing the truth doesn’t necessarily make a person better off.

Its second claim to greatness is the cast. There’s Orson Welles, at the peak of his powers and in the rôle of his career. But he’s not directing so his performance is more disciplined that usual. Then there’s Joseph Cotten, a good actor who is well cast and gives his career-best performance. And then there’s Trevor Howard, again perfectly cast and in top form. Alida Valli is excellent as Harry’s girlfriend. The supporting cast is equally impressive, with Bernard Lee especially good as Calloway’s sergeant. And there’s an aded bonus - the always delightful Wilfred Hyde-White.

Its third claim to greatness is its stylistic brilliance. It’s so stylish that there have been rumours that Welles took a hand in the directing. No-one familiar with Carol Reed’s career as a director would believe this for a moment. Style was Carol Reed’s middle name. And if you compare it to other notable Reed films such as Fallen Idol and Our Man in Havana you will see exactly the same visual flourishes that you see in The Third Man. Carol Reed didn’t need anyone’s help to direct a masterpiece. And in The Third Man he’s on fire. Reed used visual tricks when they were needed. This was a movie that lent itself to a bravura approach. This is the world of Harry Lime and nothing is straightforward.

Apart from the absurd claim that Welles had a hand in the directing there’s the equally nonsensical claim that he contributed in a major way to the script. In fact he contributed one line. These silly claims seem to have originated with Welles. Welles’ career as a director ended up amounting to virtually nothing and his one really memorable acting performance, in The Third Man, was a supporting rôle in someone else’s movie. This must have rankled with him and may have led him to make these ridiculous wildly exaggerated claims.

Every single shot in this movie is exquisitely composed and photographed. There’s not a single moment that hasn’t had care and attention lavished on it. Cinematographer Robert Krasker won an Oscar for his work on this film. If it’s film noir visual style you’re after then this movie has it in abundance. In fact it’s hard to think of any movie that is more visually film noir than this one.

Mention must also be made of the famous zither soundtrack. l disliked it the first time I saw the movie but now I realise Reed was quite right in his judgment. It adds to the unique flavour of war-torn Vienna.

The StudioCanal Blu-Ray offers an excellent transfer and a host of extras. There have been many DVD releases of the film, some good and some terrible. This is one instance where, if you’re a fan of the movie, it probably is worthwhile upgrading to the Blu-Ray.

The Third Man may not be a perfect film but it’s about as close to perfection as you’re ever going to get. There’s not a single false note, not a single weakness. I said at the beginning that it would make my list of the ten greatest movies of all time and I’m now more convinced than ever of this. A truly great movie. Very very highly recommended.

You can find my review of Greene's novella The Third Man here.

Prince of Foxes (1949)

Prince of Foxes is a 1949 20th Century-Fox historical epic that doesn’t deliver quite the kind of swashbuckling thrills that Tyrone Power’s presence in the leading role might lead one to expect. Fortunately the movie has other virtues, most notably Orson Welles in full flight as Cesare Borgia.

The setting is Italy around 1500. Cesare Borgia is doing what you’d expect Cesare Borgia to be doing - hatching nefarious plots to extend his power. His latest idea is to marry his sister Lucrezia to Alfonso d’Este, the son of the Duke of Ferrara. Lucrezia is already married but that obstacle is easily disposed of. That particular husband has served his purpose and has met the fate that usually met those who were no longer of use to the Borgias. To arrange the marriage of Lucrezia to Alfonso Cesare dispatches one of his most useful followers, Andrea Orsini (Tyrone Power). Orsini is exactly the right sort of man for such a mission - young, handsome, charming, cunning and utterly without any moral scruples. Orsini is ambitious, an ambition fueled by a well-kept secret. He is not the nobleman he pretends to be but a peasant who initially hoped to study to be a painter. Finding that there were other more lucrative careers open to a man with an agile mind, a ready wit and a willingness to advance himself he had re-invented himself as Andrea Orsini.

Before reaching Ferrara he almost falls victim to an assassin employed by the Duke of Ferrara, Mario Belli (Everett Sloane). Orsini could easily have killed Belli but he takes a liking to his would-be murderer, recognising Belli as a kindred spirit, an unscrupulous adventurer but a man likely to be a useful ally.

His mission successfully completed he is given another similar task. The almost impregnable castle of Città del Monte blocks the route to be taken his armies on his next campaign. The elderly count of Città del Monte (played by Felix Aylmer) needs to be persuaded to agree to this, or disposed of if he refuses. The count has a young and pretty wife, Camilla (Wandra Hendrix), who has already caught Orsini’s eye.

At this point Orsini starts to undergo a sea change. He falls in love with Camilla (something he has never done before) and he comes to like and admire the elderly count. Orsini begins to realise that maybe ambition isn’t everything, that perhaps honour is something worthwhile. It had never occurred to Orsini that he might have finer feelings but now he discovers that he has them to an extent that is going to cause him to re-evaluate his willingness to serve Cesare Borgia. The difficulty with that is that men who betray Cesare Borgia tend to have rather short life expectancies.

Prince of Foxes is a little slow-moving, or at least the first half of the film is. There are some fine battle scenes but the movie gives Tyrone Power fewer opportunities to strut his swashbuckling stuff than you might expect.

As I indicated earlier there are compensations. The movie was filmed in Italy and there’s a great deal of very impressive location shooting. Power tried, unsuccessfully, to persuade Zanuck to make the movie in Technicolor. The black-and-white cinematography by Leon Shamroy is however exceptionally beautiful.

Henry King was the kind of director who made the golden age of Hollywood golden, a fine craftsman who could be relied upon to turn out well-made good-looking and thoroughly entertaining movies such as this.

Tyrone Power was particularly good at playing complex heroes and does a fine job. Everett Sloane is enormous fun as the amiable rogue Belli. Felix Aylmer, as always, is able to convey dignity without any hint of dullness. Wandra Hendrix looks stunning and makes an acceptable heroine.

The real drawcard here is Orson Welles. Welles is in magnificent form delivering a bravura performance that exquisitely combines charm, menace, sadism, black humour and megalomania. His Cesare Borgia has the fascination of a cobra, with fewer moral scruples.

This is one of five movies included in Fox’s Tyrone Power Collection. This set is an absolute must-have for swashbuckler fans. Prince of Foxes boasts a very handsome transfer.

Prince of Foxes might have benefited from giving Tyrone Power a few more sword-fights but this movie still has plenty going for it - gorgeous locations, lovely cinematography, some fine battle scenes and most of all an outrageously extravagant villain played by Orson Welles at full throttle. Highly recommended.