Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		5.0

The Third Man 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 25, 2025

If anyone is counting and/or keeping track, The Third Man has had so many releases on 1080 Blu-ray discs through the years that Harry Lime is arguably at least the thirteenth or fourteenth man by this time, so to speak, and perhaps numbers even larger than that if you consider his "enumeration" increases by the power of three each time. Joking aside, some of these are of course what are basically the same releases region coded for different areas of the globe or at least packaged separately for different countries, and in that regard, this new Region A 4K edition from Lionsgate's boutique e-tailer Lionsgate Limited appears to be the same package, at least in terms of disc contents if not in terms of actual packaging, as several 4K releases that came out around the world in November of 2024, including this 75th Anniversary Collector's Edition from StudioCanal for the United Kingdom, which Svet Atanasov reviewed at the time of its release (if you peruse our database, you'll see there are also German, French, Italian, Spanish and Belgian 4K options available as of the writing of this review). All of that said, this is the only 4K SteelBook release of the film I see in our database (again as of the writing of this review, though there is this rather old 1080 SteelBook from Studio Canal's UK division), and while the packaging format may be somewhat different than the other global 4K releases, quite a bit of the non disc swag that seems to be available with those editions has been included.

Speaking of StudioCanal, one of the two previous Region A 1080 releases of the film was branded as part of the StudioCanal Collection by Lionsgate, and my The Third Man Blu-ray review of that edition gives my thoughts on this iconic film as well as my reaction to its technical presentation, along with a listing of supplements that were offered. This release does port over some of those supplements (see below).

The Third Man 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080 disc in this package.

The Third Man is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate Films and StudioCanal with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 1.37:1. As is perhaps subliminally alluded to courtesy of the restoration featurette with personnel from Deluxe (which no longer exists), this is an older 4K restoration, and while some may feel newer technologies might at least marginally improve some aspects, this presentation is excellent in and of itself and is certainly head and shoulders above the old 1080 Lionsgate / StudioCanal Blu-ray I reviewed many years ago. I'm evidently a bit more of a curmudgeon than Svet was when he reviewed the UK release, as there are definitely still signs of age related wear and tear and some noticeable density and clarity fluctuations along the way, which have led me to just slightly downgrade Svet's 5.0 score, in the latest iteration of my mantra "different reviewers means different opinions". That said, this is an often stunning looking transfer, with some really crisp contrast helping to accentuate the incredible chiaroscuro cinematography of Robert Krasker. Svet's review only mentions HDR, but this disc offers Dolby Vision as well, and the HDR grades certainly help to at least marginally improve shadow detail in sequences like the famous sewer scenes. Blacks are incredibly deep at times throughout this presentation. The prevalence of (sometimes weirdly skewed) close-ups helps to support some really appealing fine detail levels on faces and things like costume fabrics and/or patterns. Grain can be quite heavy, but resolves without any issues.

Note: As I posted in the Forum about this release, the first 4K UHD disc Lionsgate sent had a rather weird anomaly where the main menu loaded, but without any menu options visible, so the feature and/or supplements could not actually be accessed. This could very well just be a case of an isolated bad disc, but just in case anyone else encounters this oddity, please private message me so that I can keep Lionsgate in the loop.

The Third Man 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

I frankly didn't notice a whale of a lot of difference between the audio presentation on this disc and the similarly encoded DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track that was on the old Lionsgate / StudioCanal 1080 release. There's noticeable background hiss throughout this presentation which is probably especially noticeable at the very beginning, before Anton Karas' memorable zither music kicks in, but during quieter scenes throughout the film it becomes less subliminal. Otherwise, while the sound here is on the boxy side, there's no major damage to report. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.

The Third Man 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Both the 4K UHD and 1080 discs in this package sport the same slate of great supplements:

• Noreen Ackland on Saving The Third Man (HD; 5:42) is an excerpt from a British Entertainment History Project audio interview. This plays to stills and candids.


• Audio Commentary with Guy Hamilton, Simon Callow & Angela Allen


• The Third Man — A Filmmaker's Influence (HD; 16:48) features Martin Scorsese, John Sayles and others speaking about how the film affected them.


• Restoring The Third Man (HD; 19:38) is a wonderful archival featurette documenting the Deluxe restoration. This features a couple of former Deluxe employees who moved on to Silver Salt Restoration and were part of my recent interview with them.


• Joseph Cotten's Alternate Opening Voiceover Narration (HD; 1:23)


• The Third Man Interactive Vienna Tour (HD; various) is an absolutely captivating tour of notable Viennese sites. See Svet's review of the UK edition for a listing of various locales offered.


• The Third Man on the Radio (HD; 30:14) features The Lives of Harry Lime and A Ticket to Tangiers.


• Interview & Zither Performance by Cornelia Mayer (HD; 4:43)


• Shadowing The Third Man (HD; 1:33:29) is a first rate feature length documentary on the film.


• Behind the Scenes Stills Gallery (HD; 5:10)


• Anniversary Trailer (HD; 00:39)

This Lionsgate Limited exclusive offers a handsomely designed SteelBook that emphasizes black and dark blue tones on its front and rear panels. The front panel features Welles and Valli, while the back panel recreates one of the vertiginous shots in the sewers. The interior panels offer another illustrated version of a Viennese alleyway seen in the film. The SteelBook encloses the 4K UHD and 1080 discs, with four art cards and a fold out mini poster on the left side. A larger format booklet is offered with good essays and stills. Both it and the SteelBook are enclosed by a Mylar O ring that surrounds the Welles and Valli images with a representation of the famous ferris wheel from the film's climactic scene. A digital copy is also included.

The Third Man 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Lionsgate Limited still seems to be getting its "sea legs", so to speak, with a somewhat baffling opening array of releases that have offered various packaging choices and a somewhat variable approach toward supplements and/or non disc swag. If this release doesn't have the same kind of packaging the UK release from StudioCanal did, and also seems to not offer the annotated screenplay (unless it's hidden somewhere I didn't see), otherwise this has the same generally excellent technical presentation and outstanding supplements as that release did. Highly recommended.