G321 Thriller Research - The Third Man Review.

Strange deaths to fakery, in this review I will be talking about a film that claims to be the best motion picture in history "The Third Man".

The Third Man is a 1949 British film which belongs in the film noir genre, the film was directed by Carol Reed and stars Joseph Cotton, Alida Valli, Orson Welles and Trevor Howard. As I stated earlier this film is considered to be one of the greatest films of all time and is celebrated and respected for its acting, cast, soundtrack and atmospheric cinematography. Anton Karas wrote The Third Man theme and only uses a zither to play the score. The theme topped the international charts in the year 1950 a year after the film's official release to cinemas bringing the then-unknown performer fame around the globe.
The plot is about an American Pulp Western writer Holly Martins who travels to Allied-occupied Vienna in order to find his old childhood friend Harry Lime only to find out that he died in an accident. Holly along with some allies research and investigate his death and finding out later on that Harry really faked his own death to carry out his evil deeds.

The Third Man uses many ambitious and create cinematography and camera shots along with angles to create a dark, dingy and unsettling atmosphere. No CGI was used as computers where not invented during this time until recently when The Third Man was re released to cinemas and DVD / Blu-Ray in the brand new 4K quality which brings out more detail (which is just under 4000 lines) from buildings and even people. The Third Man got its film noir reputation through its use of black and white filters throughout the film.

The film uses thriller conventions from the use of weapons, locations such as wet streets, death and costume. The film also takes place in a realistic and dangerous location as Harry roams the streets and Vienna is a war-torn city just after World War II which adds obstacles along the way.

Unlike most thrillers The Third Man shows no excessive violence which is quite unexpected for thriller movies but judging from the year violence was not a popular aspect of films until much later in films such as the "James Bond" series and the "Kill Bill" trilogy.

The film is a brilliant piece of film and will interest anyone who adores thriller films, the casting suited the roles of the characters and the storyline is compelling. The music score is absolutely outstanding and the quality of the film is perfect.