Video introduction by writer-director Peter Bogdanovich, Two audio commentaries: one by filmmaker Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Tony Gilroy, and one by film scholar Dana Polan, Shadowing “The Third Man” (2005), a ninety-minute feature documentary on the making of the film, Abridged recording of Graham Greene's treatment, read by actor Richard Clarke, “Graham Greene: The Hunted Man,” an hour-long, 1968 episode of the BBC's Omnibus series, featuring a rare interview with the novelist, "Who Was the Third Man?" (2000), a thirty-minute Austrian documentary featuring interviews with cast and crew,

The Third Man on the radio: the 1951 “A Ticket to Tangiers” episode of The Lives of Harry Lime series, written and performed by Orson Welles; and the 1951 Lux Radio Theatre adaptation of The Third Man, Illustrated production history with rare behind-the-scenes photos, original UK press book, and U.S. trailer, Actor Joseph Cotten's alternate opening voice-over narration for the U.S. version, Archival footage of postwar Vienna, A look at the untranslated foreign dialogue in the film

The Third Man is directed by Carol Reed and stars Joseph Cotton, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, Bernard Lee, and Trevor Howard. It was written by Graham Greene, and Anton Karas composed the musical score. ***

A moderately-successful American writer arrives in Europe to visit his long-time friend. Unfortunately, he quickly finds himself in a web of suspense and mystery upon discovering that his friend has been murdered. As he begins investigating the murder, against the wishes of the local police, he makes an amazing discovery - and is faced with the most difficult decision of his life. ***

This was one of the first titles that Criterion chose to release on the Blu-Ray format. And let me start by saying, they made a damn good choice. ***

The Third Man is a unique film that shows off everything the film noir genre needs. Suspense, intriguing characters, a gorgeous setting, the list goes on. Filmed beautifully and directed by the underrated Carol Reed, and with some great performances and direction, the film never screeches to a halt at any point in its duration. Not to mention the bizarre (but still excellent) musical score that accompanies the classic scenes gives it another kind of uniqueness. ***

Needless to say, Orson Welles is the stand-out member of the cast here (as he is in nearly any movie he appears in.) He creates a classic character that makes this movie stand out a cut above the rest, even if he doesn't appear until over an hour into the movie. Joseph Cotton is great as our hero, and Bernard Lee, later famous as M in the long-running James Bond franchise, has a minor role as a policeman. With suspense around every corner and well-played classic characters, it is tough to deny The Third Man's place as a truly classic film. ***

Trivia: David Bowie is seen watching The Third Man in his 1976 film, The Man Who Fell To Earth (which has also been released on Blu-Ray by Criterion.) Likewise, the Harry Lime character in Home Alone gets his name from Orson Welles' character in The Third Man. ---

Image And Sound:

When it comes to faithful catalogue remasters, Criterion is number one. Their transfer of The Third Man proves to be no exception. The movie is pillarboxed to the appropriate 1.33:1 aspect ratio, and the amount of detail and clarity in the picture is amazing. Film grain appears in almost every shot but is never distracting. Tons of print damage and dirt has been cleaned up for this issue, and it shows in every frame. If I have one minor complaint, it is that there are a few shots where some dark flickering appears at the left and right edges of the frame (though this is just likely an issue that came from the shooting style.) A lossless mono soundtrack stays truthful to the original film's audio, and suits this release perfectly. Another winner from Criterion.

Wow. When it comes to bonus features, Criterion pulls out all the stops and never fails to deliver. There are a ton of featurettes on this disc, and you'll learn a ton of information about the movie in the process. There are two commentary tracks, a new intro to the film by Peter Bogdanovich, documentaries (including one with Steven Soderbergh), rare footage, behind-the-scenes information, and plenty more. Not to mention it includes the obligatory Criterion booklet, packed with essays and additional information. This is how to do a Blu-Ray release of a classic title right.

Final Words: