The Third Man
Our story begins with the arrival of Holly Martins, a writer of dime-store cowboy novels, who’s come to Vienna at the invitation of his childhood chum, Harry Lime. But hold on to your hats, because things are about to take a dark turn. No sooner does Holly set foot in the city than he learns that Harry has been killed in a traffic accident. Cue the dramatic music!
Not one to take things at face value, Holly starts digging deeper. He attends Harry’s funeral and meets a colorful cast of characters, including the lovely Anna Schmidt (Harry’s girlfriend), the jovial Baron Kurtz, and the cynical British officer, Major Calloway. But here’s the kicker: each of these people seems to have a different version of how Harry died. Inconsistencies abound, and Holly’s spidey senses are tingling.
Major Calloway drops a bombshell on Holly: Harry was actually a notorious black marketer, responsible for stealing penicillin from hospitals, diluting it, and selling it on the streets. This caused the deaths of many innocent people, including children. Talk about a plot twist! Holly, ever the loyal friend, refuses to believe it and sets out to clear Harry’s name.
As Holly plays amateur detective, things start to get dangerous. Witnesses clam up or wind up dead. A mysterious “third man” is spotted at the scene of Harry’s accident. Holly realizes he might be in over his head, but he’s in too deep to back out now.
Just when you think things can’t get any crazier, Holly spots none other than Harry Lime himself, lurking in a shadowy doorway. Plot twist number two: Harry’s been alive this whole time! Turns out, he faked his death to escape the heat from the police and his double-crossed partners in crime.
Harry arranges a clandestine meeting with Holly on the famous Wiener Riesenrad, the Giant Ferris Wheel. In a scene dripping with tension and moral ambiguity, Harry delivers a chilling monologue, justifying his evil deeds with a twisted philosophy. He even compares the insignificant dots of people below to mere dots on a page, ripe for the taking. Sociopathic much, Harry?
The climax of the film is a heart-pumping chase through the sewers of Vienna. Harry tries to escape, but Holly and the police are hot on his trail. In a moment of poetic justice, Holly has the chance to shoot Harry but hesitates, torn between his loyalty and his conscience. Calloway steps in and finishes the job, putting an end to Harry’s reign of terror.
The final scene is a masterclass in understated emotion. Anna, Harry’s girl, walks right past Holly at Harry’s second funeral, ignoring his affections. Calloway delivers the film’s iconic final line, “Death’s at the bottom of everything, Martins. Leave death to the professionals.” Mic drop.
So there you have it, a story of friendship, betrayal, and the depths of human depravity, all wrapped up in a stylish film noir package. The Third Man is a cinematic masterpiece that keeps you guessing until the very end.
(plot summary AI assisted)
This one is an easy 4/5 stars. I like Orson Welles and film noir so this is right up my alley. I came in clean to this having heard very little about it so the plot twist caught me by surprise or perhaps I couldn’t think straight due to god damn zither music. Very enjoyable movie that was well acted and the use of shadow and lighting was incredible – the lighting was a fourth star in this movie the long shadows distorting reality and making you second guess what you’re seeing were disorienting at times.