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Scholz I "Eine Revolution des Films" "Eine Revolution des Films77: The Third Man (1949), The CoId War and Alternatives to Nationalism & Coca-colonization in Europe Anne-Marie Scholz "Shelved and safe" as a twentieth century film classic, it is probably difficult for most filmgoers today to imagine the hope and enthusiasm that greeted the release ofCarol Reed's The Third Man in Europe in 1949. Based upon a story by Graham Greene, The ThirdMan, set in a post war ally-occupied Vienna, tells the story of the naive American writer, Holly Martins (Joseph Corten), who discovers the corrupt activities ofhis allegedly murdered friend Harry Lime(Orson Welles), and reluctantly helps the British police (Trevor Howard, Bernard Lee) apprehend Lime. A romantic subplot turns on his unrequited infatuation for his friend's former lover, Anna Schmidt(Alida Valli). Reed added to the basic "melodrama" of the plot by filming on location in Vienna, casting a distinguished collection ofAmerican, Italian, British, German, Austrian, and Russian players; using a multi-lingual script (English, German and some Russian ); adding a striking score by the zither player Anton Karas, which became perhaps the best known tune in the world in the 1950's; and employing exceptional camera work. The film won the Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival that year, and thousands of filmgoers all over the world flocked into the theatres to see it. The film was of particular interest to German speaking audiences because it was actually filmed on location in the city ofVienna and cast a number ofrespected and popularAustrian and German stage actors, such as Paul Hoerbiger, Ernst Deutsch, Erich Ponto, Siegfried Breuer, and Hedwig Bleibtreu.1 Special emphasis was placed in the press upon the fact that the film would open in Germany at the same time as in other West European countries, even before the opening in the U.S., very likely suggesting a gesture of reconciliation toward Germanspeaking audiences.2 When the dubbed version of the film opened in Germany's major theatres in January 1950, the reThe actor Siegfried Breuer (Popesco) along with Paul Hoerbiger (the porter) and Ernst Deutsch (Baron Kurtz) figure prominently in this German publicity collage. sponse was overwhelming. In Hamburg, in addition to very large audiences, there were even public requests that the film be screened in the original, English-language version. The Filmblaetter, Berlin, for example, reported that by March 17, 1950, "every tenth Berliner," an audience of350,000, had seen The ThirdMan. And when the film opened in East Berlin, 22,000 advance tickets were sold in the first two days.3 During the shooting ofthe film in early 1949, entire sections of Vienna were closed to the Austrian public, as Isa Hohmann noted in the Buehne und Film, Berlin, but Austrians were excited ratherthan resentful, proud that theircity had been chosen by Reed as the ideal setting for his nextfilm, andpleased that "the Austrian people in the film would be played by Austrians." As if to underline the diplomatic significance of the filming, Hohmann begins the article by giving the entire plot ofReed's suspense thriller away and focuses upon the cooperation between Austrians and English : "das duerfte heut am hohen Markt sein, wo die Englaender drehen!" ("The British should be filming at the High Market today!") Reed's decision to shoot on location had significant meaning to Austrians, as the presence of the British was interpreted as a gesture of cultural exchange, even as Hohmann's article relied on metaphors of occupation, with Reed as a kind of military leader with an excellent command of his film "crew." From the outset, Carol Reed's The ThirdMan was understood to be more thanjust another movie.4 Indeed, the image of postwar European cooperation marked German discussions of The Third Man. "The Filmblaetter recognized in the film the first work of an explicit European spirit." "This was a significant example of a European community production," noted the Frankfurter Neue Presse. The Schwaebische Zeitung referred to it as "a truly international film." Austrian press promoters for London Films 44 I Film & History Anne-Marie Scholz | Special In-Depth Section gave producer Alexander Korda credit for being "the first foreigner who did not...

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