Pulp novelist Holly Martins travels to shadowy, postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, Harry Lime.Pulp novelist Holly Martins travels to shadowy, postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, Harry Lime.Pulp novelist Holly Martins travels to shadowy, postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, Harry Lime.
- Won 1 Oscar
- 5 wins & 4 nominations total
- Anna Schmidt
- (as Valli)
- Karl
- (as Paul Hoerbiger)
- Kurtz's Mother
- (uncredited)
- International Patrol A
- (uncredited)
- Soldier
- (uncredited)
- Man Chasing Holly
- (uncredited)
- Casanova Barman
- (uncredited)
- Military Policeman
- (uncredited)
- Russian Military Policeman
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- Graham Greene
- Orson Welles(uncredited)
- Alexander Korda(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe Vienna Police Dept. has a special unit that is assigned solely to patrol the city's intricate sewer system, as its network of interlocking tunnels make great hiding places for criminals on the run from the law, stolen property, drugs, etc. The "actors" playing police officers in the film were actually off-duty members of that unit.
- GoofsIn the two separate back projection shots of Calloway, Martins and Paine, supposedly traveling in a jeep at night in Vienna, a double-decker London bus can be seen in the background.
- Quotes
Harry Lime: Don't be so gloomy. After all, it's not that awful. Like the fella says, in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock. So long, Holly.
- Crazy creditsOpening credits prologue: V I E N N A
- Alternate versionsThe UK version features introductory voice-over by the director Carol Reed; in the US version Joseph Cotten provides the voice-over, as his character Holly Martins. The UK version runs 104 minutes, versus the US version at 93 minutes, which was cut by producer David O. Selznick to give the film a tighter pace. Both versions have been released on video in the U.S., but as of today the most common is the longer British cut. A video comparison between the narrations appears on the U.S. Criterion Collection DVD.
- ConnectionsEdited into American Cinema: Film Noir (1995)
The story starts, after a nicely done prologue, with Martins arriving in Vienna, and finding out that his friend Harry is not only dead but is accused of running a particularly destructive black market racket. Martins sets out at once to prove his friend's innocence, getting into an immediate scuffle with the police, and it seems at first to set up a conventional plot about clearing the name of a friend - but the actual story that follows is much deeper and much better. It is just right that Martins is an innocent who writes cheap novels for a living, and he gets a pretty memorable lesson in fiction vs. reality. There are some great scenes (the Ferris-wheel confrontation being as good a scene as there is in classic cinema) leading up to a memorable climactic sequence, and a good supporting cast, with Alida Valli as Anna being very good in complementing Lime and Martins. The setting in crumbling post-war Vienna and the distinctive zither score go very nicely with the story.
This is a fine, flawless classic, and while obviously belonging to an earlier era, it deserves a look from anyone who appreciates good movies.
- Snow Leopard
- Jul 22, 2001
- Permalink
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Languages
- Also known as
- El tercer hombre
- Filming locations
- 8 Schreyvogelgasse, Vienna, Austria(doorway where Harry Lime first appears)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $1,067,364
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $13,576
- May 9, 1999
- Gross worldwide
- $1,242,880
- Runtime1 hour 33 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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