The Third Man

There is a long intro giving important information about the film, like director, cast and editing etc. In the background we see a guitar like shape with strings going through screen, this is parallel with the music being played to the titles. Furthermore this type of music was popular in the 40’s and is used through out the film. The titles are white making them stand out to the dull black and while background.

Camera – distance, angle, movement – The actually film starts of with an ElS, establishing the film is set in the city. Then the name of the city where the film is set comes to the centre of the screen, Vienna. A series of long shots are used to denote different parts of the city to the audience. Then a series of close ups showing what life is like for the narrator. We then see close up’s of 4 certain flags, showing us how the city is split up with the 4 major zones. Long shot to show one of the commander’s being transported around, then a close up showing added important, perhaps he is a commander from one of the 4 zones. It is important LS show us what Vienna is like after the war, and how the war has damaged the city. A mid shot is used for one normal person, this denotes that he is important to the film, we see that he is a common citizen and coming to Vienna for a job. The camera is used a great deal in the opening of The Third Man as it establish many different parts of Vienna, also different peoples lives within the city. Using a series of close ups and long shots to create purpose and meaning to the different features shown in the Vienna.

Editing – speed, style –
A fade is used when displaying Vienna, this draws the attention of the audience to the city name. Then jump cuts are used for the rest of the opening, this is done to allow the audience to see what Vienna is like after the war, also how it has effect different people. The jump cuts, are a quick way to get from one shot to another, in this case a new bit of information about Vienna. How ever the shots were all roughly the same length when showing different aspects of Vienna, but then the show lengthens as a new character is introduced, this empathies how the character maybe important. This is helpful to me as I allow me to see that editing is used in different ways to portray different meanings.

Sound – effects, musical score –
Narration is the only sound that is used in the opening of the film. This is done very well as he is explaining what has happened after the war to the town and people of Vienna. We begin to think that the narrator is the either an important character in the film due to how he explains certain circumstances using words like “ we “. Or he has a extended purpose in the film as tells the story of what has happen and how different people come into the film. This is very important if I am trying to recreate a film noir, narration is a important factor, portraying what happens in the film as the film may jump making it hard to understand.


Mise-en-scene – props, costume, setting, lighting, colour – It has been used to set the scene, portraying the nice and perhaps iconic areas of Vienna, making it seem to be an inviting city. It then jumps straight to a different side showing the lower class people having to sell what they can on the black market. Shots of troops and military vehicles surrounded my war torn property show that this will be a common sight, and a heavy influence on the film. A well-dressed man arrives on a train, he stands out as he looks different, so far the cast is either dressed in uniform or working clothing. His attire is a statement the he’s higher class.