The Third Man (1949)

The Third Man parents guide

There is no US rating to lean on. What we tagged stays mild: some violence and mild language.

Scare

Not scary

Jump scares

None noted

Gore

No gore

Violence

Some violence

Some fighting or peril.

Sex and nudity

None flagged

It has no US rating to check against, so treat our zero as unconfirmed.

Language

Mild

Mild words like damn, hell or crap.

How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.

Three questions

Is The Third Man scary?

No. The Third Man is not a scary watch.

How gory is The Third Man?

No gore and some violence. Squeamish viewers are fine here.

What is The Third Man about?

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.

Cast and crew

More like The Third Man

• Memento (2000)Suspenseful · light gore · strong violence · emotionally devastatingA man with no short-term memory hunts his wife's killer, piecing together a gritty, cerebral puzzle.
• Psycho (1960)Properly scary · light gore · strong violence · emotionally heavyA woman on the run finds a chilling, atmospheric motel where dread steadily builds to a shocking twist.
• Rear Window (1954)Suspenseful · emotionally heavy · measuredA confined photographer's intimate observations of his neighbors slowly reveal a chilling, atmospheric mystery.
• The Sixth Sense (1999)Properly scary · no gore · emotionally heavy · measuredA child psychologist uncovers a boy's chilling secret, weaving a measured tale of suspense and melancholy.
• Vertigo (1958)Suspenseful · emotionally devastating · measuredA detective's acrophobia intertwines with a dangerous obsession while investigating a friend's wife.
• Shutter Island (2010)Suspenseful · light gore · strong violence · emotionally devastatingA marshal's investigation into a missing patient unravels amidst chilling visions and a pervasive sense of dread.
• The Others (2001)Properly scary · no gore · emotionally heavy · measuredA mother protects her light-sensitive children from unseen forces as a chilling, atmospheric mystery unfolds.
• Se7en (1995)Properly scary · extreme gore · brutal violence · emotionally devastatingTwo detectives hunt a serial killer whose gruesome crimes are meticulously based on the seven deadly sins.

The Third Man is on our Noir and neo-noir, Classics (pre-1970), Tubi, Thriller on Tubi and Mystery on Tubi lists.

More like this feeling

Prompts we typed into CouchRot, and the lists that share its tags.

• “a thriller with a twist, no spoilers”
• “a horror movie that's actually scary”
• “scary but not gory”

Lists with the same feel: Melancholy and Late night.