The Third Man - 7 stars out of 10

The Third Man - 7 stars out of 10

"Like the fella says, in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock. So long Holly."  The Third Man was a very enjoyable movie, with an amazing villainous performance by Orson Welles (but then again, when is he anything less than amazing?)  A great feature is that there are no subtitles when characters speak in a foreign language.  Since Holly is a foreigner, it helps us to relate to him and to grasp what he experienced.  Post-war Vienna is a great setting for a murder mystery.  And of course, it features an outstanding twist that you will never anticipate.  Though this was a great movie overall, it bothered me that the music didn't quite line up with the mood of the movie.  It almost sounded more like the soundtrack from Spongebob Squarepants than a murder mystery.  Though I wouldn't put this movie up there with Hitchock's movies, The Third Man  provides a great mystery that is fun to experience with well-written characters.