The Third Man

            The Third Man is a Classic Film Noir film with a tinge of thriller. Classic film noir, ("black film-) the dark and cynical genre that found its place in Hollywood films from the 1940's on, is well know for its dark rainy streets, criminal treachery, victimized anti-heroes and femme fatales. Classic film noir is often centred on visual and specifically cinematic elements. Low-key lighting, chiaroscuro effects, deep focus photography, powerful camera angles and expressionist distortion are the main features of classic film noir. In The Third Man "strong characterisation and dialogue, complex themes, vividly authentic locations in war-ravaged Vienna, memorable acting performances and outstanding talent in technical production - (McLean, 1992, 139) .
             Almost all the features of the classic noir films were present in The Third Man apart from the famous soundtrack. The dialogue in the film was often blunt and straight to the point with the occasional witty one-liners. The characters were the hard-boiled, cynical, disillusioned characters; that are nevertheless usually likeable and a male protagonist facing a moral dilemma or some kind of threat, in this case it is Holly. The thematic concerns were with the criminal, violence and greed elements, and were metaphoric indicator of society's evil, with obvious hints of moral conflict in The Third Man. More specifically the moral ambiguity of the characters fits the classic film noir characters. Also the identities of the characters are continuously mixed "Calloway who is called Callahan', Anna persists in calling Holly Harry', and Holly calls Dr. Winkel WINK-el' instead of VINK-el. - (www.filmmonthly.com/noir/article/thirdman/thirdman.html) showing the identity crisis's they face.
             Set in the post-war Vienna, the camera shots captivate the "bleak, weary and, in this case, corrupt city."" (www.filmmonthly.com/noir/article/thirdman/thirdman.html). In the setting black-and-white chiaroscuro effect are used, with the help of the contrast between light and shadow since the majority of events that take place in the film are at night.