Question about The Third Man (1 Viewer)

[Dennis Nicholls]

At the end of Carol Reed's film The Third Man, Holly faces a wounded Harry who is too weak to open the grates and escape up the ladder. Both are holding revolvers. They look at each other and then the screen cuts away. A single gunshot is heard, and then Holly walks back into view through the mists in the sewers.

Did Holly shoot Harry, or did Harry commit suicide? Either situation is a plausible ending.

 

[SteveGon]

Perhaps you noticed that the trapped Harry nods to Holly, basically telling his old friend to do him in, preferring that to being taken by the police.

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

Well yes Harry makes a world-weary nod: a gesture that he knows he's finished. But he also doesn't drop his revolver. He could have brought it up to his own head and fired it.

I presume this ambiguity may have been intentional on Carol Reed's part.

 

[Martin Teller]

I dunno, it's always been pretty clear to me that Holly did it. It also makes the final scene much more meaningful.

 

[Larry Sutliff]

I haven't read it for a long time, but I'm almost positive that Holly(who is called Rollo in the book!) kills Harry in Graham Greene's novella.

 

[Robert Crawford]

It's something that some of today's directors can learn from that generation of directors in which you don't have to spell out every single detail of the storyline, thus allowing the audience to draw their own conclusions.

Every single aspect of a movie doesn't have to be wrapped up in a nice little bow for us. Letting the audience use their imagination can be quite effective and possibly make the film even better.




Crawdaddy

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

Fourteen years later I still wonder. Anna's behavior would have been the same whether Holly shot Harry, or Harry shot himself.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Fourteen years later I still wonder. Anna's behavior would have been the same whether Holly shot Harry, or Harry shot himself.

Again, I think Reed left it up to people to decide for themselves whether Holly shot Harry or Harry committed suicide. Personally, I think Holly shot him after getting the nod from Harry. Also, Harry couldn't lift that grate because of a car being on top of it.

 

[usrunnr]

It's something that some of today's directors can learn from that generation of directors in which you don't have to spell out every single detail of the storyline, thus allowing the audience to draw their own conclusions.

Every single aspect of a movie doesn't have to be wrapped up in a nice little bow for us. Letting the audience use their imagination can be quite effective and possibly make the film even better.




Crawdaddy

As in "2001: A Space Odyssey".

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

At the end of Carol Reed's film The Third Man, Holly faces a wounded Harry who is too weak to open the grates and escape up the ladder. Both are holding revolvers. They look at each other and then the screen cuts away. A single gunshot is heard, and then Holly walks back into view through the mists in the sewers.

Did Holly shoot Harry, or did Harry commit suicide? Either situation is a plausible ending.

Ha, because of the way the picture shows you things I feel I would be wrong to answer this question because as a viewer I think you are in exactly the place you should be and where the filmmakers wanted you. Does it matter to you how any of the rest of us see it? It's a great, great film.

I loved walking that city thinking about the film and even rode in the Prater, the ferris wheel that Orson gives his famous speech in. It's still there!

Just love what the film gives you and go back and watch it again, believe me it is so worth it.

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

I loved walking that city thinking about the film and even road in the Prater, the ferris wheel that Orson gives his famous speech in. It's still there!

I've wandered through the cemetery myself, when I made the pilgrimage to visit Beethoven and Brahms back in 1985.