In Search of the Third Man Book

Charles Drazin has little time for the notion that a film is the product of the individual genius of its director. In his account of the making of one of British cinema's finest films, Drazin seeks to show that film-making is instead "about how individuals work together--or often don't work together". In the case of The Third Man, the clashes of personality during the production make an already interesting story all the more compelling; upon reflection, it is surprising that this is the first attempt at an objective, book-length chronicle of the making of the film. Long before the production began, Drazin tells us, there was already "an atmosphere of mutual suspicion" between the British producer Alexander Korda and his American partner David O Selznick, portrayed here as an archetypal crass movie mogul. In this tense atmosphere, matters were made still worse by problems on set, such as Orson Welles turning up days late for the shoot then refusing to film in the Viennese sewers. Drazin considers that critics are far too kind to Welles ("the greatest ham in the business"), believing that the praise belongs much more to director Carol Reed: "a man whose real genius lay in collaboration". This revisionist stance proves typical of the author's compelling approach to his subject, as he interviews a number of previously unsung heroes, and provides a wealth of fascinating information about the production. An appropriate balance is generally struck between opinion and fact, although it occasionally strays too far into the former, as when Drazin analyses the influences acting upon writer Graham Greene. This speculation aside, the book provides an informative and lucidly written account, which ends on a high point as Drazin recounts his own visit to Vienna in 1998 and tells us the story behind The Third Man's famous final shot. --John OatesRead More