In Search of the Third Man (Limelight) - Softcover

Charles Drazin

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0879102942 ISBN 13: 9780879102944

Publisher: Limelight (UK), 2000

Synopsis

Half a century after its opening, The Third Man remains an unquestioned masterpiece of film artistry and, for many, the greatest British movie ever made. Whether it is Harry Limes magical first appearance or the celebrated cuckoo clock speech or the climactic chase through the sewers beneath Vienna or the haunting theme music of Anton Karas, the film contains some of the most memorable moments in screen history. Drawing on both contemporary documents and accounts of the people involved, In Search of The Third Man explores the many myths that over the years have grown around this extraordinary film, and seeks to unravel the facts from the fiction.



“...youll want to read The Third Man...The story of the films creation is as intriguing as the film itself” –Leonard Maltin, Playboy

About this title

Review

Charles Drazin has little time for the notion that a film is the product of the individual genius of its director. In his account of the making of one of British cinema's finest films, Drazin seeks to show that film-making is instead "about how individuals work together--or often don't work together". In the case of The Third Man, the clashes of personality during the production make an already interesting story all the more compelling; upon reflection, it is surprising that this is the first attempt at an objective, book-length chronicle of the making of the film.

Long before the production began, Drazin tells us, there was already "an atmosphere of mutual suspicion" between the British producer Alexander Korda and his American partner David O Selznick, portrayed here as an archetypal crass movie mogul. In this tense atmosphere, matters were made still worse by problems on set, such as Orson Welles turning up days late for the shoot then refusing to film in the Viennese sewers. Drazin considers that critics are far too kind to Welles ("the greatest ham in the business"), believing that the praise belongs much more to director Carol Reed: "a man whose real genius lay in collaboration".

This revisionist stance proves typical of the author's compelling approach to his subject, as he interviews a number of previously unsung heroes, and provides a wealth of fascinating information about the production. An appropriate balance is generally struck between opinion and fact, although it occasionally strays too far into the former, as when Drazin analyses the influences acting upon writer Graham Greene. This speculation aside, the book provides an informative and lucidly written account, which ends on a high point as Drazin recounts his own visit to Vienna in 1998 and tells us the story behind The Third Man's famous final shot. --John Oates

From the Author

A few comments
When I was writing In Search of The Third Man, I had no idea that the film would be re-released in both British and American cinemas or that it would come top in the British Film Institute’s recent poll (announced September 1999) of favourite British films. The result was the perfect birthday present on the film’s 50th anniversary, and it was welcome confirmation that The Third Man mattered just as much to other people as it did to me. Unquestionably the most enjoyable part of writing my book was visiting Vienna. There you can ride the Great Wheel and look down on the little dots that were of so little account to Harry Lime. You can have coffee in the Cafe Mozart, where Holly Martins met Baron Kurtz for the first time. From there it’s just a short walk up to Harry Lime’s apartment. Walk a little further, and you come to that doorway, perhaps the most famous in movie history, No. 8 Schreyvogelgasse, where Harry’s smile was lit up in the darkness. You can even go down into the sewers. There’s an excellent tour which shows you all these sights (conducted by Brigitte Timmermann of Vienna Walks and Talks). In Vienna, The Third Man is all around – and under – you. So I would urge people who have enjoyed In Search of The Third Man to visit the city and to go in search of The Third Man for themselves. Any comments on the book or the film are very welcome.

Edition details

• Publisher: Limelight (UK)
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0879102942
• ISBN 13: 9780879102944
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 242