The Third Man (Blu-ray Review)

December 1st, 2008 Blu-ray-au Posted in Blu-ray Movie Reviews | Comments Off

The Third Man (Blu-ray Review)

One of the greatest film-noir movies ever made, Carol Reed?s ?The Third Man? (1949) follows the deeds of an American writer who arrives in post-war Vienna looking for his friend. Beautifully-lensed and filled with suspense, the picture offers a disturbing portrait of a world ruled by injustice, rotten political ideologies, and nihilism. Courtesy of Criterion.

A young American novelist, Holly Martins (Joseph Cotton) arrives in Vienna looking for his friend Harry Lime (Orson Well…

Video

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.37:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC, and granted a 1080p transfer Carol Reed?s The Third Man arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

I could not wait to get my hands on this disc. I was excited to see Wong Kar-Wai?s Chungking Express in 1080p but, for a number of reasons, I was waiting to see how Criterion will treat their B&W films. Suffice to say, I have some terrific news that will surely warm plenty of hearts.

First …

Audio

On this Blu-ray disc you will find exactly what the majority of us were hoping to hear ? an uncompressed English mono track. I really do not have any critical thoughts pertaining to this audio track. The dialog is crystal clear and very easy to follow, there aren?t any inconsistencies that I could detect, and overall it really shows that serious restoration efforts have gone into securing a deserving audio presentation. Of course, I am certain, the big question many of you are pondering is: Is t…

Supplements

Before we get to the disc extras let?s take a look at Criterion?s booklet. In it you will find an informative essay titled ?The One and Only?? by Luc Santie (the author teaches at Bard College and has writings include Low Life, The Factory of Facts, and Kill All Your Darlings). The actual essay focuses on the history of The Third Man as well as the effect it had on world cinema as a whole. There is also a short note about the transfer, in addition to production credit…

Final Words

Wow, what a package! Carol Reed’s The Third Man, courtesy of Criterion, has received what is surely going to become the definitive release of this classic piece of British cinema. I really cannot see what could have been improved here. The entire package is absolutely superb. This really is what Blu-ray is all about, and in the hands of competent distributors the format is capable of delivering miracles. Very Highly Recommended. ……

Read full review: Blu-ray.com