American writer Holly Martins goes to post-Second World War Vienna at the invitation of his old friend Harry Lime, only to find he has died. However, the author finds the circumstances surrounding death fail to add up and goes in search of the truth - but is unprepared for the ugly secrets he uncovers. Carol Reed's thriller, written by Graham Greene, starring Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles, Alida Valli and Trevor Howard.

In postwar Vienna, Austria, Holly Martins, a writer of pulp Westerns, arrives penniless as a guest of his childhood chum Harry Lime, only to learn he has died. Martins develops a conspiracy theory after learning of a "third man" present at the time of Harry's death, running into interference from British officer Major Calloway, and falling head-over-heels for Harry's grief-stricken lover, Anna.