The Third Man (Movie 1949)

Some times you just have to delve back into the classics. I can think of no better movie to give you an appreciation for black and white films than The Third Man. It had even won Best Cinematography- Black and White from the Academy Awards. And now is your chance to see it on Netflix. The images are just gorgeous of wet streets at night lighted by street lamps and shadowy figures in door ways. It is set in post WWII Vienna where some of the city is still in heaps of rubble. It stars the great Orson Welles and Joseph Cotton. Holly Martins (Joseph Cotton) is a writer who comes to Vienna after getting a letter from an old childhood friend about a job opportunity. When he arrives he finds out this his friend was killed after being run over by a truck. But as Holly Martins begins to learn there is much more to the story. There is definitely a mystery here and danger. This is film noir at it's best. One of my favorite scenes in movie history happens here with the Swiss cuckoo clock speech. Pure genius! The theme music which is played solely by a zither is haunting and will stay with you. Give this one a shot and witness when movie making was an art form.