This film is part of Rentals
The Third Man
Carol Reed's timeless classic, one of the greatest British films, lavishly marries a perfect script, an unforgettable theme tune and the star power of Orson Welles.
Director: Carol Reed
Overview
One of the greatest British films, Carol Reed's classic very consciously emphasises its time and place - post-war Vienna - yet its resonant themes around loss of innocence and a fall from grace render it timeless. Joseph Cotten plays the writer searching the Austrian capital for his missing friend, Harry Lime. He's disturbed to discover that Lime recently died, but soon begins to doubt the official version of events.
Graham Greene's peerless script borrows its pessimistic outlook from American Film Noir, but manages to balance its cynicism with wit and pathos. Containing many celebrated sequences, including its sewer-set finale and Welles' iconic onscreen entrance, the film also boasts one of the most memorable theme tunes in all cinema; the puckish zither score by the then unknown Anton Karas, whom Reed discovered in a bar. The Third Man was a big success upon its release, generating radio and TV spinoffs, but it's also risen in estimation over the years to become one of British cinema's most cherished treasures. Ranked joint 63rd in the 2022 Sight and Sound Great Films of All Time poll.
mild threatRelated
The Critic The Critic
Period drama 2023 101 mins Director: Anand Tucker
Ian McKellen is in delicious form as London's most vicious critic, who strikes a Faustian pact with a struggling actor (Gemma Arterton).
Night Courier (Mandoob) Night Courier (Mandoob)
Comedy 2023 112 mins Director: Ali Kalthami
A desperate delivery driver gets caught up in the dark underworld of Riyadh in Ali Kalthami’s gripping, pitch-black satire.
Official Secrets Official Secrets
Thriller 2018 112 mins Director: Gavin Hood
Gripping political thriller with Keira Knightley as the intelligence officer who discovers a plot to rig a UN vote on the eve of the Iraq war.
Dark Waters Dark Waters
Biopic 2019 126 mins Director: Todd Haynes
Mark Ruffalo plays an attorney trying to uncover the corporate scandal of a chemical company poisoning a local community, in this searching ecological drama from Todd Haynes (Safe, Carol).
Seven Psychopaths Seven Psychopaths
Comedy 2012 110 mins Director: Martin McDonagh
Three Billboards' director Martin McDonagh spins an epic and twisted tale of pets and gangsters, with an all-star cast.
Eye in the Sky Eye in the Sky
Thriller 2016 102 mins Director: Gavin Hood
Helen Mirren and Alan Rickman (in his last role) play the military commanders caught in the ethical crosshairs of drone warfare, in Gavin Hood’s gripping military thriller.
Orlando Orlando
Fantasy 1993 93 mins Director: Sally Potter
Tilda Swinton stars in Sally Potter's dazzling interpretation of Virginia Woolf's novel.
2001: A Space Odyssey 2001: A Space Odyssey
Science Fiction 1968 149 mins Director: Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick took science fiction cinema in a grandly intelligent new direction with this epic story of man’s quest for knowledge.
The Searchers The Searchers
Western 1956 119 mins Director: John Ford
John Ford created perhaps the greatest of all westerns with this tale of a Civil War veteran doggedly hunting the Comanche who kidnapped his niece.
Parasite Parasite
Comedy 2019 132 mins Director: Bong Joon-ho
Bong Joon Ho's Oscar®-winning box-office sensation is a darkly comic, twisty rollercoaster ride.
Rio Bravo Rio Bravo
Western 1958 141 mins Director: Howard Hawks
Hawks’ leisurely but surprisingly suspenseful chamber western mixes drama and comedy to create an unforgettable classic.
The Wild Bunch The Wild Bunch
Western 1969 145 mins Director: Sam Peckinpah
Peckinpah’s violent yet lyrical western is a nostalgic elegy for the passing of the Old West.
Shadow of a Doubt Shadow of a Doubt
Drama 1943 108 mins Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Hitchcock’s personal favourite from his own films is a brilliantly suspenseful drama about a teenage girl whose uncle may be a murderer.
The Man Between The Man Between
Drama 1953 102 mins Director: Carol Reed
Carol Reed follows Odd Man Out and The Third Man with this thriller starring James Mason and Claire Bloom set in post-war Berlin.
The Fallen Idol The Fallen Idol
Thriller 1948 96 mins Director: Carol Reed
Carol Reed’s Graham Greene adaptation tells the dark but touching story of a young child’s relationship to his friendly, complicated butler.
No Other Land No Other Land
Documentary 2024 92 mins Director: Basel Adra, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal and Yuval Abraham
This powerful documentary from a Palestinian-Israeli collective might be one of the most important films of this year.
Small Things Like These Small Things Like These
Drama 2024 99 mins
Oscar-winner Cillian Murphy delivers a stunning performance as a coal merchant who discovers horrific secrets about his local convent.
Only the River Flows Only the River Flows
Crime 2023 102 mins Director: Shujun Wei
Shujun Wei's slow-burn noir draws us inexorably into its mysterious psychological journey.
The Critic The Critic
Period drama 2023 101 mins Director: Anand Tucker
Ian McKellen is in delicious form as London's most vicious critic, who strikes a Faustian pact with a struggling actor (Gemma Arterton).
Special People Special People
Comedy 2008 74 mins Director: Justin Edgar
Justin Edgar's pioneering feature comedy about a neurotic filmmaker enlisted to make a film with a class of wheelchair-users.
Timestalker Timestalker
Comedy 2024 89 mins Director: Alice Lowe
What if unrequited love spanned the centuries? Alice Lowe's time-jumping fantasy rom-com is a colourful, darkly funny treat.