The film has a classic score
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BBC News Online highlights the key movies in the development of the British film industry.
In 1949, director Carol Reed and screenwriter Graham Greene worked in harmony to create one of the most atmospheric and powerful thrillers in cinema history.
It is the story of a simple American, played by Joseph Cotten, who arrives in post-war Vienna to meet his old friend Harry Lime, played by Orson Welles.
However, he arrives only to learn that Lime has been killed in an accident.
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Credits
Director: Carol Reed
Producer:
David O. Selznick
Screenplay: Graham Greene
Score: Anton Karas
Cast: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten
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Determined to unravel what happened he is also drawn into the corrupt world in which Lime existed.
"Of all the movies I have seen, this one most completely embodies the romance of going to the movies," wrote influential US movie reviewer Roger Ebert.
Producer David O. Selznick originally wanted Noel Coward for the role of Harry Lime but director Carol Reed insisted on Orson Welles.
The film is full of sequences that remain hallmarks of modern cinema, while the The Harry Lime Theme by Anton Karas created a haunting movie atmosphere.
In 2000 the film was voted the greatest British movie ever made in a poll by the British Film Institute.
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