by Jerry Greenberg on February 19, 2017
Harvey Black offers up the theme from the movie, “The Third Man” as his “song of the day.” The reason? “It is a haunting melody from one of the best films ever made, says Harvey. “The music, played on a zither, is evocative.”
The Third Man is a 1949 British film noir, directed by Carol Reed and written by Graham Greene. It stars Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, and Trevor Howard. The film focuses on Holly Martins, an American who is given a job by his friend Harry Lime, but who arrives in post-war Vienna to the news that Lime is dead. Martins then meets with Lime’s acquaintances in an attempt to investigate what he considers a suspicious death.
The atmospheric use of black-and-white expressionist cinematography by Robert Krasker, with harsh lighting and distorted “Dutch angle” camera technique, is a key feature of The Third Man. Combined with the unique theme music, seedy locations and acclaimed performances from the cast, the style evokes the atmosphere of an exhausted, cynical, post-war Vienna at the start of the Cold War.
Greene wrote the novella of the same name as preparation for the screenplay. Anton Karas wrote and performed the score, which featured only the zither (see below). The title music, The Third Man Theme, topped the international music charts in 1950, bringing the previously unknown performer international fame. It is considered one of the greatest films of all time, celebrated for its acting, musical score and atmospheric cinematography.
[Excerpted and edited from Wikipedia]