Shandor reacts to THE THIRD MAN (1949) - FIRST TIME WATCHING!!!

#thethirdman #reaction #firsttimewatching
In today’s video I’m watching the 1949 film noir „The Third Man” starring Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli and Orson Welles.
Have fun!
Time stamps:
00:00 Intro
00:23 Movie reaction
33:35 Closing thoughts & saying goodbye

[@strongdecaf3729]

The zither music is one of the most important characters in the film.

[@alfredroberthogan5426]

The riveting zither music by Anton Karas is indeed a key part of what made this British film a true classic--ranked #1 among all British films in 1999. Zither music, which became an international sensation because of this film, is like bagpipe music--truly unforgettable, haunting, poignant. Terrific performances by Joseph Cotton, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, and remarkable photography, add to its high reputation. Unfortunately, this review omits the famous cuckoo clock speech by Mr. Welles whilst atop the Ferris wheel.

[@deckofcards87]

The music score is fantastic. It's playful and I think perfectly suits the movie in a kind of ironic way. There's cultural and historical factors as to why they chose it (I recommended reading the Wikipedia article or an interview with Karas). Joseph Cotton is in a number of things with Orson Welles, either directed by Welles or co-starring opposite him. Their most famous collaboration was of course in Welles' "Citizen Kane." Thanks for another fun reaction 👍 Can't wait to see what you watch next!

[@glennwisniewski9536]

Actor Bernard Lee at 3:37, best known as M in the early James Bond films.

[@ronaldchives2486]

He’s my favourite character in the film, he has such charming manners, even when he punches Holly and picks him up and helps to his feet, it is very hard hitting when he is shot by Harry and fitting that Holly takes his gun and shoots Harry with it.

[@Pamtroy]

The music is meant to convey the dishonesty and violence considered the norm in postwar Vienna.

[@Pamtroy]

The discussion about "dots" is the most famous moment in this film.

[@glennwisniewski9536]

The Third Man Theme, also known as The Harry Lime Theme, was a number one hit in 1950. It was specifically released as a single and started a trend of movie themes issued with just one other song. The Anton Karas movie version came out first but various cover versions also charted soon after.

[@Pamtroy]

Holly was played by Joseph Cotton, a wonderful, rather underrated actor. Check out SHADOW OF A DOUBT by Hitchcock, where Cotton plays a terrifying serial killer.

[@shandoratthecinema4098]

Sounds great!

[@francoisevassy6614]

Cotten, not Cotton !

[@teijaflink2226]

That movie is amazing too.

[@im-gi2pg]

I love the opening song SO much!!!!!!! 🎉🎉🎉 That’s all I need! My aunt told me she stood next to Orson Welles at a some TV function (her husband had a CBS News show in Mexico City so I believe it was there). They were both serving themselves food at the luncheon buffet and she wanted to talk to him but couldn’t think of anything to say! She was super intelligent and loved to communicate. She missed her chance.😢😂

[@edwardroneill]

1. The score, which you find irritating, was HUGE at the time. The theme song became a hit single, and it popularized the zither! 2. If you think about using brass music (which would be more typical for noir scores), it would not fit Vienna! 3. Carol Reed didn't usually use canted angles so much. People suspect Welles had some influence. David Lean was a friend of Reed's, and as a joke, after seeing the film, Lean sent Reed a gift: a level. 4. Holly Martin was played by Joseph Cotton--who co-starred with Welles in CITIZEN KANE as Kane's frenemy. So the casting is definitely a reference.

[@normanmeharry58]

One of the best films I've ever seen . Everything is just right. And under the anecdote is a profundity that makes it reverberate even after a 100 viewings

[@arturocostantino623]

It got the Academy Award for cinematography which it deserves. The music is meant as a contract to the darkness of the movie.😊

[@shandoratthecinema4098]

In that case it did the job!

[@francoisevassy6614]

Also Grand Prix of the movie festival in Cannes.

[@Divamarja_CA]

It was pretty rare, back in the day, to have movies shot on location. This film, focusing so much on the state of post-war Vienna, is even more special because of the crumbling and war-torn surroundings shown in the film.

[@michaelm6948]

Joseph Cotten, great actor, played Holly. Cotten was part of Orson Welles' famous theater group, and later in Welles' films, it was called the Mercury Theater group or Mercury players. The director is the legendary Carol Reed, an Englishman. Reed was one of the groundbreaking film directors like Orson Welles was also. The use of strange camera angles adds to the sense of the breakdown of morality and nihilism that is the theme of the story. Welles' dialogue with Cotten, at the top of the Ferris wheel, brings out this moral nihilism. Individuals are just members of an indistinguishable mass of humanity, who can be erased like dots on a piece of paper, by governments at war, or by criminals engaged in their own criminal enterprises. It's all part of a meaningless universe. You see the Soviet and Western powers, splitting up their territory and exchanging populations, just like Harry and the criminal enterprises engage in their rackets. So, issues like totalatarianism, are also themes here. The masses of people are the pawns. The one sense of meaning you see here, is the dignity and morality of the soldiers searching for Harry Lime. Also, the unacknowledged caring of the hospital nuns. They are working within an amoral system, but try and stamp their own actions with some meaning. The screenplay is based on the novella written by the English writer, Graham Greene. Greene also did the screenplay. The nihilist world of the Third Man is reflective of what came to be known in Greene's literary work as Greeneland. Greene is one of the premier writers in 20th century English literature. Another great film collaboration between Carol Reed and Graham Greene is The Fallen Idol. I realize you didn't like the music, but it became very famous and popular. It was composed by Anton Karas, an Austrian, and is all played by him on the zither. Reed came across Kara's playing in a Vienna cafe and was signed on to compose the film score in a few weeks. The "Harry Lime theme" was a big hit. It's one of the first films using just one instrument, the zither. This article might help explain why the music was used: www.criterion.com/current/posts/482-listening-to-the-third-man

[@darrenhoskins8382]

The senior police officer was played by Trevor Howard who had a brilliant career of many years. Check out Brief Encounter and Ryan’s Daughter, both by the great David Lean.

[@michaelt6218]

Shandor, perhaps your headphones distorted the sound mix, or possibly you were watching a badly duped copy of the film -- but I have seen "THE THIRD MAN" many times and the music has never seemed too loud. And the choice of the zither is widely regarded as brilliant by most critics. That doesn't mean you have to like it, but for me it's almost another character in the movie, and the viewing experience just wouldn't be the same without it.

[@shandoratthecinema4098]

I totally get it. And yeah, it must be the "remastered" version I saw, because the mixing was way off.

[@gerrygorman157]

And Shandor you excluded one of the most famous monologues in the film....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.

[@teijaflink2226]

I loved the zither music, I thought it was perfect for the movie but I think they should have mixed it with some other instruments or a different score because it started to kind of annoy and hurt my head me in the end too, specially after one hour of hearing it.

[@EricVoegelin]

This guy didn't understand the counterpoint of the zither music and the the noir visuals, and he didn't include Lime's great cuckoo clock speech. Disappointing.

[@susanbinzer3395]

The music MAKES the film shandor! I'm guessing it was nominated 4 AA?

[@rs-ye7kw]

An absolutely great film elevated to even greater heights by the score which perfectly matches the time period (post WWII), the setting(Vienna) , and the political situation at that time. Sorry you didn't get that feeling.

[@LaurelT1948]

The sounds in the sewer scene, as well as the fast dialogue, reflect the radio work that Welles and Cotten did together. One of my favorite films! Cotten was a great actor. You must see Citizen Kane, which stars both Cotten and Welles. I suggest that you also see. Odd Man Out, 1947, directed by David Lean and starring James Mason. It’s unusual and suspenseful, with wonderful cinematography.

[@mikec.looks4magic554]

Touch of Evil and The Lady From Shanghai are 2 Major Classic films with Orson Welles ... Must See !!!

[@robabiera733]

The intention of the Dutch angles is to keep you off your balance. All the time.

[@shandoratthecinema4098]

Well, it worked.

[@philpaine3068]

One of the subtleties of the movie is that the character Holly Martins (played brilliantly by Joseph Cotton) does not understand that Harry Lime has NEVER been his "friend." When he talks about Harry in the past, his words reveal that Harry always played him for a fool, always used him. He was merely a pet that Harry indulged in, like someone would with a pet hamster --- or like the cat that remained loyal to Harry even though Harry abandoned him. Holly remains clueless, never understanding the evil around him, and that his pursuit of Anna is pointless. Graham Greene, when he wrote his "philosophical thriller" saw the character as typical of many Americans he knew during that era ---- sincere and idealistic, but hopelessly naive about the wickedness of the world. Greene was a cynical Brit, but there was some truth to that evaluation. Greene often wrote about people whose weaknesses, naivite and personal loyalties drew them to disaster. He also understood the ruthlessness of people like Harry, who attract the love and loyalty of others, but return only carefully calculated strategic gestures. I've known many examples of all these characters.

[@shandoratthecinema4098]

That is some great insight right there!

[@robertjewell9727]

Dear Shandor, can I suggest SHADOW OF A DOUBT...? 1943 Hitchcock film with Joseph Gotten. who played Holly. He's also excellent in CITIZEN KANE and THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS both directed by Orson Welles. You can also see him make a cameo in Welles' noir masterpiece TOUCH OF EVIL (but be sure to watch Crierion's excellent edited specifically to the way Orson originally intended.) Wonderful reaction. Throughout it I told myself "I can't wait for Shandor to see the fingers through the grates shot!

[@shandoratthecinema4098]

Both Shadow Of A Doubt and Citizen Kane are on my "have-towatch" list, for sure!

[@jimmybee4768]

Wonderful reaction. Amazing movie. It’s ironic that his dear childhood friend is such a soulless villain. The climax for me was when they were high up in the Ferris wheel and his true character was revealed. The Director was comfortable ending in a realistic way. He did not go for a happy ending. She was still in love with her deceased lover, even though he didn’t care about her. The music is very interesting. It’s a kind of zither. The Director heard someone playing it outside of a café that he frequented. And thought that the folksy and quaint music effectively depicted the poverty, and despair of postwar, Germany. He had a big fight over it with the studio execs, they wanted a full orchestra, but eventually he got his way. The third man movie theme was an international hit and it made the zither- player /composer who wrote it ,wealthy.

[@shandoratthecinema4098]

Thanks for the info, very interesting!

[@Esoterre]

The sound track was a popular tune in 1947.

[@hannahpumpkins4359]

Things are happening fast in the movie because everyone is hustling on the streets; the first person to respond to a deal is the one that gets it and gets paid! You should watch Key Largo - it's awesome!

[@shandoratthecinema4098]

It's on my list now!

[@waynejackson3162]

Yes, I studied filmmaking in college, and I considered Third Man, on e of the five greatest films ever made, and the director:Carol Reed, one of the greatest directors, especially if you get a chance to see some of his other films.

[@shandoratthecinema4098]

I guess I should!

[@waynejackson3162]

@shandoratthecinema4098 I suggest: Carol Reed's Fallen Idol, he won an award for the movie.

[@jamesharper3933]

The music is indeed an interesting choice. Orson Welles was a film and directorial genius. His work heavily influenced filmmaking. I am a new subscriber and will be watching future reactions. I definitely appreciate your delving into classic films of the past. I highly recommend the following classics if you haven't already seen them: 1944 Double Indemnity 1945 Mildred Pierce 1955 The Big Heat Thanks 👍

[@arturocostantino623]

By the way there’s a video of the Beatles playing the Third Man theme😮

[@shandoratthecinema4098]

Really? I'll have to check that out!

[@LaurelT1948]

Another film noir you should watch is the actionful, tense T-Men, 1947, by Anthony Mann. This one has some of the best cinematography I’ve ever seen, and great sets in the gritty side of Los Angeles. Based on real treasury department investigations.

[@JohnnyLichtergud]

yeah man, another fantastic reaction. You really know your stuff! Please do not stop. We watch this flick about once a year... except in our copy [edit]...we sepia'd it to help out with the dark scenes. This, after we muffled the shit out of out of that tune! Off subject, in 1965, Herb Alpert and the the Tijuana Brass covered this song, 'The Third Man Theme'...and it totally rocks!!!

[@pamelachristie5570]

While zithers can be found all over the world, they're kind of Austria's national instrument. I'm sorry that the music was too loud for you, but remember, this movie was not made with headphones in mind. When I saw it in a theater the sound level was just fine.The lighthearted quality of the zither, associated with Vienna's prewar waltzes, pastry shops, and pretty buildings works to stunning effect here. Your ears are reminding you of the city's lighter side, while your eyes are showing you the sinister underbelly. It's meant to catch you off-guard, like the Dutch camera angles.

[@Findo_Gask]

A wonderful film but also one that is quite depressing. There is a sense of waste that pervades it for obvious reasons.

[@matthewzuckerman6267]

So strange how the music bothers you since in many people's opinion (including mine) it's one of the greatest marriages of music and film in cinema. I wonder if you had a faulty copy? (Other than that, a fine reaction to a great movie.)

[@jamesalexander5623]

You cut the famous Cuckoo Clock speech!

[@milenakorovljev4209]

Music in the movie WAS one of the most important thing as someone already mentioned, but our young American friend is not able to comprehend subtleties of European way of thinking , its music and I would dare to say, probably unfamiliar, or partly familliar with its history. That was not HOLLYWOOD movie. That was ART.

[@Ceractucus]

Shandor, I think you must have gotten a bad copy or bad sound. I really think the score of this movie is practically a character in its own right and out of all the music that accompanies, I'd say only Bernard Herman's music in Vertigo comes close to being as good.

[@MrGadfly772]

I think the music is SUPPOSED to contrast with the film. It provides a sense of the absurd, a sense that things are all a game, as they were to Harry Lime. Notice when the music starts and when it is absent.

[@jesusfernandezgarcia9449]

Never say that the music doesn't fit in "The Third Man." It's not good for your channel, but it's your channel and you're free. That is just my opinion.

[@majomaja5646]

Search for: Fake penicillin, The Third Man, and Operation Claptrap. You'll find out why this film is truly "great". The past is ever present.

[@Retrostar619]

Think about how Harry Lime views life, and you'll realise ehy the zither score is there.