For decades, there’s been controversy over whether Welles directed
The Third Man or whether Carol Reed did. The fact that the film stars Welles, his good pal and
Citizen Kane co-star Joseph Cotten, not to mention numerous shots and camera angles that scream Orson Welles, has led many to believe that Welles ghost-directed the film. There’s also the fact that Welles is one of the greatest and most influential directors who ever lived, whereas if Carol Reed directed the film, he’d have to be the most prominent one-hit wonder in cinema.
Oliver! is one of the worst Oscar-winners ever, and most critics agree.
Well, here’s an interview with Welles in 1958, and his response to the authorship question is quite interesting.
- Was your share in making The Third Man about equivalent to your share in Journey Into Fear?
- It was more. I’d prefer not to be asked about that, it’s a delicate matter, because I wasn’t the producer; I’ve a right to tell you about what I did on Journey Into Fear though.
http://books.google.com/books?id=0xkXdZf_b4MC&pg=PR32&lpg=PR32&dq=%22The+Third+Man%22&source=bl&ots=kNlF3LKAWz&sig=GA5jAdVmX1sRcQn6OH6xo2ahVv0&hl=en&ei=_nVySrumMYeoMY7KgLEM&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=52#v=undefined&q=%22The%20Third%20Man%22&f=false
The fact of the matter is that Hollywood effectively blacklisted Welles when he made The Third Man. Carol Reed served as a front against the blacklist- think of the movie The Front starring Woody Allen. That’s why Welles didn’t want to discuss it. Let those who believe that Reed pulled a masterpiece out of his sleeve, for his sole collaboration with Welles, and then again descended to mediocrity read this, and they’ll see who the true creative force behind the film is.
